NVIDIA is planning to invest $200 million in an AI center in Indonesia. The project, a partnership with local telecommunications firm Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, aims to bolster Indonesia's digital infrastructure and nurture local AI talent.
According to Indonesia's Communication and Information Technology Minister Budi Arie Setiadi, the new AI facility will be based in Solo Technopark in the city of Surakarta, Central Java. The center is expected to enhance telecommunications infrastructure and support the development of human resources and digital talent in the country.
Indosat, Indonesia's second-largest mobile network operator, announced last month its readiness to integrate NVIDIA's next-generation Blackwell chip architecture into its infrastructure. The company stated that this move would propel Indonesia into a new era of sovereign AI and technological advancement.
NVIDIA's increased presence in Indonesia is part of a broader expansion into Southeast Asia, as the region experiences a surge in data demand driven by its growing digital economy. In January, Singapore's Singtel announced a partnership with NVIDIA to deploy AI capabilities in its data centers across the region, providing businesses with access to NVIDIA's cutting-edge AI computing power without the need for their own expensive data center infrastructure.
Southeast Asia has proven to be a significant revenue driver for NVIDIA. A U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing last year revealed that about 15% of the company's revenue, amounting to $2.7 billion, for the quarter ended October came from Singapore alone. This figure represented a staggering 404.1% increase from the $562 million recorded in the same period the previous year, outpacing NVIDIA's overall revenue growth.
According to NVIDIA's latest quarterly earnings report, data centers comprised the majority of its revenue, generating $18.40 billion amid the global AI boom. The company's growth has been primarily driven by its high-demand H100 chips, which power AI chatbots like ChatGPT.
The collaboration between NVIDIA and Indosat is expected to involve technology transfer, enabling Indonesia to become not just a user but also a significant player in the AI industry, both regionally and globally. With Indonesia being the most populous country in Southeast Asia and AI projected to boost the region's GDP by up to $1 trillion by 2030, the establishment of this AI center marks a strategic move for both NVIDIA and Indonesia's digital future.