Is Indonesia Ready To Lead The AI Revolution With Sahabat-AI?

The project has attracted global tech giants like Nvidia, AI Singapore, and India's Tech Mahindra.

FILE PHOTO: Words reading "Artificial intelligence AI", miniature of robot and toy hand are pictured in this illustration taken December 14, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Indonesia’s tech scene is buzzing with excitement as two major players—Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison and GoTo Gojek Tokopedia—have teamed up to launch Sahabat-AI, a groundbreaking large language model ecosystem designed for the Indonesian market.

Here’s a quick dive into what this new initiative means

AI in Local Languages

Sahabat-AI is tailored for Bahasa Indonesia and other regional languages, making it a game-changer for AI adoption in the country. This means businesses, developers, and entrepreneurs can now create AI-driven apps and services in a way that speaks to local cultures and contexts.

Collaboration with Global Powerhouses

The project has attracted global tech giants like Nvidia, AI Singapore, and India’s Tech Mahindra, which will provide the cutting-edge tools and expertise to train the model. Leveraging Nvidia’s AI platform, Sahabat-AI is designed to deliver sophisticated, high-performance language understanding.

Cultural Context at its Core

Unlike many AI models built for Western markets, Sahabat-AI emphasizes local context, with universities and media groups contributing to its development. This ensures the model remains culturally relevant, making it more accessible and useful for Indonesian users.

A Strong Launch

The model will debut with 8-billion and 9-billion parameter language models in its first phase, promising powerful AI capabilities right from the start. With robust training infrastructure, Sahabat-AI is poised to lead the charge in Indonesia’s tech revolution.

Boosting Indonesia’s AI Industry

The launch of Sahabat-AI comes at a time when Indonesia’s AI sector is attracting global attention. Big names like Microsoft are making significant investments in local infrastructure, indicating that the country is becoming a key player in the AI race.

Will Sahabat-AI be the catalyst Indonesia needs to dominate the AI industry in Southeast Asia? Time will tell.