The Indonesian government has introduced a national strategy for developing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies that span the next 25 years, between 2020 and 2045. The strategy includes the introduction of AI technologies in the fields of education and research, health services, bureaucratic reform and food security. Special emphasis is going to be laid on mobility and smart cities too. “We are all determined to create an independent, advanced and prosperous Indonesia. Let us successfully reform Indonesia from being a natural resource-based country to an innovation-based country,” announced Bambang Brodjonegoro, the Research and Technology Minister and the head of the National Research and Innovation Agency.

The country introduces the strategy just in time when other countries are also looking towards AI integration within various facets of governance and administration, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) data.

Jakarta launched an e-book laying out the national guidelines for AI integration. AI technologies development is one of the five sectors that Indonesia has laid out as technological priorities in addition to the development of the internet of things, advanced robotics, augmented reality and 3D printing.

However, bureaucratic and administrative reform will also be undertaken hand-in-hand President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo signalled a leaner bureaucracy with AI to replace a number of civil service positions. The government will employ an online single submission (OSS) system and the Single Map policy for accomplishing this vision, shared the coordinating Economic Minister Airlangga Hartarto.

While a number of Indonesian projects already employ AI technology, for forest management and in education, the guidelines note that the country still lacks provision for regulations or an official agency to oversee AI development, among other limitations such as the prevalence of foreign technology in the national market, misplacement of existing labour and data security.

To combat these limitations, the guidebook advises that country focuses on infrastructure and data, research and industrial innovation, ethics and policies, and talent development while setting up a data ethics board to oversee implementation of much-needed data privacy and security systems. While the AI providers and experts have lauded Jakarta's move to establish a foundation for AI development. they also urged the government and other stakeholders to improve on the strategy, anticipate risks and fix current flaws.

AI and robotics professor Wisnu Jatmiko of the University of Indonesia who lauded the initiative emphasised that before the country can move towards AI implementation, it should work towards creating a better internet infrastructure, nurturing high-quality talent and providing additional infrastructure to bolster technological development such as an indigenous cloud computing system to prevent any leak of confidential information.

“AI has to be controlled so that it will not replace humans and human work; AI is only meant to augment [human work],” said Rudi Rusdiah, the chairman of Big Data and AI Association (ABDI). He also called for reforms of higher education based on AI and urged the government to put in place regulations that prevent AI algorithm errors that may harm humankind.