Indonesia’s tech news, quarterly
December 2023 | November 2023 | October 2023
Indonesia’s tech news across Q4 of 2023 briefly covered items including, for instance: TikTok’s costly moves to re-enter Indonesia, following the government’s ban of the Chinese e-commerce app; Indonesian freight-forwarding technology, aiming to streamline business management for supply chains; concerns over the impact of artificial intelligence-generated disinformation on the approaching Indonesian elections; and more.
Other editions: Asia’s tech news, daily (via LinkedIn, Facebook & Twitter/X); and Indo-Pacific technology newsletters, weekly.
Also available:
Critical technologies news across Q4 2023
PwC: Navigating the Global Crypto Landscape – 2024 Outlook
December 2023
McKinsey & Co: Technology and digital in Asia
- Indonesia: Gravel raised $14M focusing on the construction industry, making finding and hiring workers easier, helping streamline contract management, and beyond
- Indonesia: TikTok to pay $840M to acquire majority stake in Tokopedia, GoTo’s e-commerce unit, in $1.5BN bid for TikTok to re-open in the country following gov’t ban over competition worries >>>
“Given TikTok’s commitment to spend the initial US$1.5 billion ($1.99 billion) and potentially more in the future to strengthen its Indonesia operations, we expect Shopee will need to further step up spending to defend market share which will unfortunately be negative to Sea’s margins outlook and likely push out any potential profitability timing for Shopee,” the analysts add.
Mittal notes that the controlling stake in Tokopedia will remain with TikTok Shop Indonesia, taking away the negative impact to GoTo’s profitability as it will receive a steady stream of revenue from TikTok. Most of GoTo’s revenue share from the enlarged Tokopedia entity will flow directly to GoTo’s bottom-line. This allows GoTo to use its stronger financial position to grow its fintech business.
StormWall: DDoS attacks in Asia Pacific in Q3 2023
- Indonesia: Authority overseeing Nusantara, new city set to ‘replace’ current capital Jakarta, inks MOU with France’s Thales for a range of smart city initiatives
- An intro to Fr8Labs, focusing on the logistics industry with SaaS operating system and with plans for an ‘open ecosystem’ allowing participation via APIs >>>
Lai says one reason for the technology gap in Asia’s freight forwarding industry is that the market is more fragmented compared to Western countries where enterprise players dominate. Large freight forwarders are able to sway other players to digitize, especially since they have systems that the companies they work with can plug into with APIs. On the other hand, Asia’s freight forwarders are primarily SMBs and don’t have the same kind of centralized power to influence new practices. Lai adds that another reason is that digital logistics systems are created for specific markets, and don’t work in Asia because of different accounting or customs policies.
As a result, many freight forwarders in Asia, especially Southeast Asia, still use on-premise software, or a combination of Microsoft Excel, email, chat and off-the-shelf accounting systems. Lai says this makes it difficult for them to scale and also results in errors that can cost freight forwarders customs or demurrage penalties (fees charged on shipping containers that aren’t picked up on time).
- Singapore-Indonesia Jagat social network breaks 10M user target with location-based approach pushing users to make in-real-life connections and friendships
- From e27: Snapshots of the 2023 startup ecosystems in The Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand
The Outlaw Ocean Project: Human rights, environment, food supply…
November 2023
- Indonesia: GoTo tech giant’s e-motorbike manufacturer, Electrum, unveils own e-scooters, battery packs and swap stations, part of 4-year, $1BN investment in self-run EV ecosystem
- Indonesia inaugurates $100M Cirata floating solar farm, SE Asia’s largest with 340,000 panels, on a 200-hectare reservoir in West Java, aiming to generate electricity for 50K households
- “The 2024 Indonesian elections will take place at a technological watershed, with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning poised to play an influential role. “
“In a recent discussion I had with Ika Ningtyas, the secretary-general of the Alliance of Independent Journalists, she voiced her concerns over the rising wave of AI-based content creation tools in Indonesia. Ika pointed out alarming instances of AI-generated content across platforms like X, TikTok, and Facebook.”
“A striking case she cited was an AI-produced video of former Minister of Health Terawan Agus Putrano purportedly claiming a breakthrough in diabetes treatment. This video gained significant traction on Facebook before being debunked by CekFakta, a local fact-checking organization. For Ika, such cases underscore the potential of AI-generated content to shape, if not skew, public perceptions, as Indonesia approaches its election campaign period.”
- Indonesia: Bank Saqu digital-only bank launches with sights on smaller, younger businesses, with estimates that 1 in 3 Indonesians – 117 million people – will have multiple side gigs by 2030
- Indonesia: Jala aquaculture tech startup raised $13.1M Series A with focus on shrimp farming, aiming to build on existing customer base across 35K water bodies and near 20K users
SharePass digital communications security
October 2023
e-Conomy SEA 2023 – Indonesia report (direct pdf download)
- Indonesia: Gojek launches commuter-focused GoRide Transit, allowing users to book multimodal trips spanning motorbikes and trains
- Indonesia: An intro to Nafas, pollution-focused startup for CSR and ESG requirements with, currently, 180 ground-based sensors in locations across 15 cities
- Indonesia’s East Ventures VC and Korea’s SV Investment join for new $100M fund looking to bridge wider SE Asia and South Korea
- Indonesia’s new e-commerce law ‘ imposes a minimum price of $100 for transactions involving imported goods on online marketplaces’, treating them the same as locally-purchased goods
- Indonesia: An interview introduction to eFishery fisheries management startup
The Outlaw Ocean Project: Human rights, overfishing, environment…
- Indonesia: Minister of Communication & Information issues warning to Meta Platforms around online gambling content, with Minister demanding immediate removal
- Indonesia: East Ventures launches $30M East Ventures Healthcare Fund, focusing on startups addressing challenges specific to Indonesia’s healthcare sector
- Indonesia: GoTo Financial and Bank Jago partner for ‘GoPay Tabungan by Jago’ e-banking service, with sights on Indonesia’s unbanked population of over 97 million
- Indonesia: Stilt Studios raised $10M Series A with sustainably-produced prefabricated modular homes, with sights on Australia as first growth market
- Mandiri Capital Indonesia and Singapore-Australia early-stage VC, Investible, prep for launch of Global Climate Tech Fund
- Indonesia: Bali Investment Club angel investor network to launch $25M Archipelago VC fund focused on sustainability early in 2024
- A brief intro to the 12 finalists for Ocean Impact Pitchfest 2023, working on kelp-based building materials, circular economy use of plastic, blockchain traceability and more
Google, Bain & Co, TEMASEK: e-Conomy SEA 2023 – Indonesia spotlight
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