Jakarta, INTI - Director and Chief Legal & Regulatory Officer of Indosat, Reski Damayanti, emphasized that efforts to build Artificial Intelligence (AI) sovereignty in Indonesia must start with the development of a supporting ecosystem, including talent development, infrastructure readiness, and strong government support.
According to Reski, Indonesia cannot directly develop AI applications without first ensuring the availability of skilled human resources capable of building and advancing the technology.
“We need to build an AI ecosystem first. We cannot expect Indonesia to create applications if the talent is not ready. These must grow in parallel,” Reski said during a discussion session at the Indonesia AI Ethics Summit in Jakarta on Wednesday.
She pointed to Singapore’s policy as an example, where incentives are provided to companies developing AI models that employ local AI talent.
Reski also stressed that government support plays a crucial role in accelerating the growth of a national AI ecosystem.
Infrastructure as the Foundation of AI Sovereignty
Beyond talent development, Reski highlighted the importance of digital infrastructure as the foundation of AI sovereignty. She noted that sovereign data management cannot be achieved without adequate supporting infrastructure such as data centers.
“We cannot expect all data for sovereign AI to be stored in Indonesia if the infrastructure is not ready. That is why infrastructure development must be carefully planned,” she explained.
Reski added that Indonesia has strong potential to become a regional hub for AI infrastructure, particularly due to its availability of land and energy resources required to operate large-scale data centers.
Data centers equipped with Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) require substantial energy capacity and large physical space.
“Indonesia has advantages in terms of energy availability and the potential to develop green energy. This should be considered to position Indonesia as one of the major infrastructure providers,” she said.
Building an Integrated AI Ecosystem
She further emphasized that AI ecosystem development cannot be done in isolation, but must progress simultaneously across talent, infrastructure, and innovation.
Reski noted that Indonesia should begin leveraging its full potential to build technological capacity, so the country can transition from being a technology user to a technology provider in the future.
“We must start thinking about how we have natural strengths, power resources, and a large population. But this human resource strength should not only be used for consumption, we must also build the infrastructure,” she concluded.
Conclusion
Building AI sovereignty in Indonesia requires a coordinated approach that integrates talent development, robust digital infrastructure, and strong policy support. By strengthening its ecosystem, Indonesia has the potential to move from a technology consumer to a key player in the global AI landscape.
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