Published: Sunday, May 19, 2024
DENPASAR (Indonesia) — Elon Musk visited Indonesia’s Bali resort island on Sunday to introduce Starlink satellite internet services in the largest archipelago country.
Musk, wearing a green Batik shirt and launching the Starlink service with Indonesian ministers, was welcomed by a garland made of flower petals in Denpasar.
Indonesia, an archipelago consisting of 17,000 islands spread across three time zones and a population exceeding 270,000,000, has tried for years to negotiate deals with Musk’s Tesla for battery investments, as well as for Musk’s SpaceX, to provide fast Internet for the remote regions of the country.
Musk tested the Starlink service’s speed with several Indonesian health workers, including Aru, an island in Maluku Province that is the most remote and least-served in Indonesia.
Musk told reporters that the technology could save lives in remote medical clinics. He also suggested it might be used for education.
“If you have access to the internet, you can do anything. You can even sell your services internationally. “I think the internet will be extremely beneficial,” said he.
Also, he signed an agreement to enhance connectivity in the health and education sectors of the country. The agreement between the Indonesian Government and Musk’s SpaceX – the aerospace company which operates Starlink services – was not disclosed.
Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Coordinating Minister for Maritime and Investment, said that launching the service in a clinic is consistent with Starlink’s broader mission to provide affordable access high-speed Internet services, especially in remote and underserved regions.
Pandjaitan told reporters that “our remote regions need Starlink’s high-speed internet service to help solve problems in the maritime, health, education, and education sectors.” Pandjaitan is a close ally to Indonesian President Joko Widodo. Musk and Pandjaitan held separate discussions on Sunday.
Budi Arie Setiadi, Minister of Communication and Informatics, said that the limited coverage on outer islands prevents local internet providers from reaching them. They rely on transceiver base stations to send signals. Starlink satellites in low orbit will allow them to provide faster internet and nationwide coverage.
According to Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin, of the more 10,000 clinics in the country, around 2,700 still lack internet access.
He said that the internet could improve access to health care services, as it would make communication easier between regions. This would allow health service providers to report in real-time or at the most recent time.
Musk will also attend the 10th World Water Forum in Bali during his first visit in person. The forum aims to tackle global water and sanitation issues.
Musk gave a speech in 2022, ahead of the summit of the Group of 20 Leading Economies that was held in Bali. He attended the conference via video link, weeks after his highly scrutinized takeover at Twitter.
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Musk’s visit came just a few weeks after Apple CEO Tim Cook visited Widodo in April and announced that the company was “looking at” manufacturing opportunities in Indonesia. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella made a visit to Indonesia on April 30, and announced that the company will invest $1.7 billion in the next four months in cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Widodo, the current president of Indonesia, has promoted the development of digital technology and the information sector in order to reach the Golden Indonesia 2045 Vision. The country hopes that it will become one of the top five economies in the world with a gross domestic product of up to $9.5 trillion exactly 100 years after it gained independence from Dutch colonizers.