Indonesia is expected to benefit the most from artificial intelligence (AI) among Southeast Asian countries, with a potential boost of up to US$300 billion to its GDP by 2030, according to industry estimates.

Although local businesses are still in the early stages of AI adoption compared with Singapore and Malaysia, the country’s vast market and growing pool of tech-savvy entrepreneurs are expected to drive growth.

“Some big companies and start-ups are what we call AI-native, founded by young people who have been exposed to AI from the beginning. They are more advanced,” Director of PT Intikom Berlian Mustika, Sudimin Mina, told Indonesia Business Post on Tuesday, August 19, 2025.

However, most Indonesian firms remain in the “catch-up” phase. Despite this, Indonesia’s projected GDP impact is the highest in the region, signaling the untapped scale of its digital economy.

Sudimin noted that AI applications could transform sectors ranging from ride-hailing and e-commerce to small and medium enterprises (SMEs). For example, AI-enabled platforms could better predict user preferences, enhance customer experience, and expand market reach.

“If ride-hailing or online shopping platforms fully integrate AI, the economic impact will be even larger, especially for SMEs,” he said.

On concerns that AI adoption could lead to job losses, he argued that the technology would instead shift the nature of work.

“Routine jobs may disappear, but workers will move into new roles requiring analysis, decision-making, and AI-related expertise such as data science and cybersecurity,” he said.

He emphasized that AI should not be seen as a replacement for humans, but as a tool to increase efficiency and productivity. “It’s not AI that replaces people, but people who use AI will replace those who don’t,” he concluded.