Indonesian operator Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (Indosat or IOH) and GoTo have announced the first phase of development of Sahabat-AI, an open-source Large Language Model (LLM) ecosystem specifically designed for Bahasa Indonesia and its local languages. Sahabat-AI is designed to provide a locally developed, open-source LLM ecosystem. With its understanding of the local context, Sahabat-AI is expected to enable Indonesians to build AI-based services and applications in Bahasa Indonesia and various local languages, addressing a gap left by global AI models, the official release said.
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Indonesia AI Day
The launch event, held during Indonesia AI day, featured speakers including Jensen Huang, Nvidia founder and CEO; Vikram Sinha, President Director and CEO of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison; and Patrick Walujo, CEO of GoTo.
Sahabat-AI
Indosat said Sahabat-AI is more than just an LLM; it is an open ecosystem that brings together research institutes, universities, media organisations, government agencies, and other partners in a national effort. The project is supported by AI Singapore and Tech Mahindra, using Nvidia AI Enterprise software, including Nvidia NeMo, to train the model and enhance general language understanding.
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Sahabat-AI’s Impact
Sahabat-AI can process vast amounts of data in Bahasa Indonesia and its local languages, preserving essential cultural and linguistic nuances. Trained using Nvidia's full-stack AI platform, the Sahabat-AI model is designed as a solution for Indonesians’ everyday needs. In its first phase, Sahabat-AI will launch with 8-billion and 9-billion parameter LLMs.
Indosat, working closely with Nvidia in Indonesia, will provide support for the ongoing development of Sahabat-AI's family of models through the Indosat Group GPU Merdeka sovereign AI cloud service featuring Nvidia Hopper-based accelerated computing. Additionally, Hippocratic AI safely focused LLM for healthcare, will incorporate the new Sahabat-AI models into its services for Indonesia residents, the official release said.
Vikram Sinha, President Director and Chief Executive Officer of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison said, "Sahabat-AI is not just a technological achievement, it embodies Indonesia's vision for a future where digital sovereignty and inclusivity go hand in hand. By creating an AI model that speaks our language and reflects our culture, we empower every Indonesian to harness advanced technology's potential. This initiative is a crucial step towards democratising AI as a tool for growth, innovation, and empowerment across our diverse society."
According to Indosat, the model is designed to enable Indonesians from private, public and educational sectors to interact with advanced AI technology in their native language.
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Vision for Sahabat-AI
Patrick Walujo, Chief Executive Officer of GoTo said, "Our vision for Sahabat-AI is to put the power of AI into the hands of everyone in Indonesia. By operating in Bahasa Indonesia, Sahabat-AI addresses critical context and cultural reference gaps left by the global large language models. It will help our businesses to communicate in new ways with customers, it will help our government ministries develop tools to engage with citizens more comprehensively and it will drive meaningful change for millions of people across the country."
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Jensen Huang, Nvidia founder and CEO said, "Sahabat-AI launches Indonesia's AI journey and showcases how LLMs can be tailored to serve unique linguistic and cultural needs. Indonesia's culture of 'gotong royong,' or mutual collaboration, demonstrates how industry, researchers and the public sector can come together to help every nation use AI to advance development."
