Journalism begins where hype ends

,,

I visualise a time when we will be to robots what dogs are to humans, and I’m rooting for the machines."

—Claude Shannon

Indonesia To Open First University-Based AI Centre at Gadjah Mada University

Indonesia has launched its first university-based AI centre at Gadjah Mada University in partnership with NVIDIA and Indosat, focusing on AI talent, research and locally developed solutions.
Gadjah Mada University campus in Yogyakarta, home to Indonesia’s first university-based AI Technology Centre
August 18, 2026 09:48 PM IST | Written by Neelam Sharma | Edited by Vaibhav Jha

The Indonesian government has announced the launch of the country’s first university-based AI Technology Centre at Gadjah Mada University (UGM) in collaboration with NVIDIA and Indosat, to provide enterprise-grade accelerated computing, AI software, open-source pretrained AI models, and technical mentorship to researchers and students.

The UGM Indosat NVIDIA AI Technology Center (NVAITC) in Yogyakarta, Indonesia was announced by the Ministry of Communications and Digital Affairs this week. It is part of Indonesia’s broader AI Center of Excellence program, which aims to bring together government, universities and industry to build locally developed AI solutions.

The center is powered by Indosat’s sovereign GPU-as-a-service platform, GPU Merdeka, and the AI platform from NVIDIA.

“The Indonesia AI Center of Excellence reflects our long-term vision to position Indonesia as a nation that not only adopts AI but also develops and contributes AI innovations to the world,” said Meutya Hafid, Indonesia’s Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs.

Initially, activities in the center will be carried out in three strategic directions which are significant for the country: health care, agriculture, and disaster management.

Currently, in health care, experts are working on the eNose-TB project where artificial intelligence is used to make it possible to detect tuberculosis by means of breath sample analysis.
In agriculture, SmartAgri supports precision agriculture through processing satellite images, sensor data, and knowledge about local farming practices.

At the same time, Tech4Disaster is developing a geospatial AI platform that can analyze the data collected from satellites and sensors for faster disaster warnings and effective emergency response.

NVIDIA announced that the center will support the Indonesian experts by providing the necessary AI instruments such as the NVIDIA’s Nemotron family of open AI models.

“Powered by NVIDIA’s full-stack AI platform and GPU Merdeka — Indosat’s sovereign GPU-as-a-service platform — UGM Indosat NVAITC also connects Indonesian researchers to a worldwide ecosystem of expertise,” read a statement from NVIDIA.

Also Read: Can AI Help Fix Indonesia’s Controversial Free Meals for Kids Initiative

Authors

  • Neelam Sharma, reporter at AI FrontPage

    Neelam Sharma is a passionate storyteller, and journalist with over a decade of experience across leading Indian media houses.
    Known for her calm presence on screen and powerful storytelling off it, Neelam brings a rare blend of credibility, creativity, and empathy to journalism. Her strength lies in ground reporting and research-driven narratives that connect with the heart of the audience. Whether covering social issues, human-interest features, or breaking news, she combines factual depth with a human touch—making every story not just informative.

    LinkedIn
  • Vaibhav Jha, editor and co-founder at AI FrontPage

    Vaibhav Jha is an Editor and Co-founder of AI FrontPage. In his decade long career in journalism, Vaibhav has reported for publications including The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, and The New York Times, covering the intersection of technology, policy, and society. Outside work, he’s usually trying to persuade people to watch Anurag Kashyap films.

    LinkedIn

Related Posts

LATEST NEWS