JAKARTA— 7 August 2025 — Amazon Web Services (AWS), an Amazon.com company, today released new research revealing that while artificial intelligence (AI) adoption continues to accelerate in Indonesia, there is a growing gap between startups and large, more mature businesses in the depth of their AI adoption. This AI gap between large enterprises and nimble startups risks creating a two-tier economy in which tech-driven startups innovate more rapidly and outpace their more established competitors.
AI adoption is gaining momentum. In Indonesia, 5.9 million businesses adopted AI solutions in 2024 – equivalent to over ten a minute on average. A total of 18 million, or 28%, of Indonesia’s businesses have already adopted AI, showing a year-on-year growth rate of 47%. The productivity and economic potential of AI adoption are promising. 59% of Indonesia’s businesses that have adopted AI reported an increase in revenue, at an average increase of 16%, while 64% expect an average of 29% in cost savings.
To better understand the scope of AI and where companies of different scales might be headed, AWS collaborated with Strand Partners to conduct the AI adoption survey in Indonesia. The “Unlocking Indonesia’s AI Potential” study surveyed 1,000 business leaders and 1,000 nationally representative members of the public in Indonesia.
Widespread but basic adoption of AI across Indonesia’s businesses
While AI adoption is increasingly widespread in Indonesia, most businesses are not yet harnessing its most advanced uses, underscoring the need to deepen AI adoption to unlock Indonesia’s full AI potential. 76% of Indonesia’s businesses remain focused primarily on basic use cases, like driving efficiencies and streamlining processes using AI – rather than innovation like developing new products or disrupting industries. Just 11% of Indonesia’s AI-adopting businesses have advanced to the intermediate stage of AI adoption, and only 10% have reached the most transformative stage of AI integration, where AI is no longer just a tool but a core part of product development, decision-making, and business models.
Startups, in particular, are enthusiastic and innovative in their use of AI in Indonesia, adopting AI’s most advanced uses far more rapidly than more established companies. 52% of startups in Indonesia are using AI in some way, of which 34% are building entirely new AI-driven products with AI, leveraging the technology to its full potential. In contrast, 41% of large enterprises use AI, but only 21% of these deliver a new AI-driven product or service, and only 22% have a comprehensive AI strategy. This gap in AI innovation uncovers a deeper finding that could shape Indonesia’s economic future.
“It is an interesting phenomenon we are seeing with AI adoption coming out of the study results in Indonesia. While 28% of businesses reported they have adopted AI, most of the deployments remain basic despite the rapid adoption of the technology over the past year,” said Nick Bonstow, Director at Strand Partners. “Larger enterprises are also at risk of being left behind by the nimbler, faster-paced startups. The resulting ‘two-tier’ economy could have lasting implications on a country’s future economic development. Celebrating AI adoption numbers alone masks the deeper challenges many businesses face across Indonesia.”
AI skills gap is the main barrier to deeper AI adoption
A lack of skilled personnel is the leading reason that 57% of businesses in Indonesia say is preventing them from adopting or expanding their use of AI. Many of the businesses reported having the technology and the vision, but are unable to find the people to bring it to life. This puts Indonesia’s global competitiveness at risk and restricts economic potential, as AI literacy is expected to be required in 48% of jobs going into the future, and only 21% of businesses feel prepared with their current workforce’s skillset. Funding is also a particularly important factor for startups in Indonesia, with 41% saying access to venture capital is crucial in creating an environment for growth.
In considering the impact of potential new AI regulations, the top hope expressed by businesses in Indonesia is for regulation to provide increased confidence among customers (51%), and a stable regulatory environment (47%). Businesses in Indonesia also estimate they spent 25% of their budget on compliance-related costs, and 62% expect that figure to increase in the next three years.
The path forward for AI innovation
The report uncovered three priority actions to overcome these barriers and unlock the full potential of AI across startups and large enterprises to avoid the emergence of a ‘two-tier’ economy: Firstly, invest in and build industry-specific digital skills programs to develop a digitally-skilled workforce to drive AI-led innovation and growth. Secondly, establish a clear picture of Indonesia’s pro-growth regulation that is predictable and innovation-friendly, to help drive deeper AI adoption across all businesses. Lastly, with 65% of businesses saying they are more likely to adopt AI if the government leads, it will be critical to accelerate digital transformation in the public sector, especially in healthcare and education, to drive innovation.
In 2021, AWS launched its AWS Asia Pacific (Jakarta) Region, with an investment of US$5 billion in the country, which AWS estimates will create 24,700 jobs annually and contribute US$10.9 billion to Indonesia’s GDP from 2021 to 2036.
AWS is also dedicated to closing the skills gap in Indonesia. To date, AWS has trained one million Indonesians on cloud skills since 2017 through programs such as AWS Skill Builder, AWS Educate, and AWS re/Start. We also run local skills initiatives such as Terampil di Awan (“Skillful in cloud”), which teaches high school and vocational students, learners with disabilities, small and medium-sized businesses, and underserved communities on Cloud and Gen AI skills. With growing concerns about the development of a ‘two-tier’ AI economy, more needs to be done to equip the workforce with the right skills at scale so organizations can innovate and grow in an AI-powered future. These programs are designed to help individuals—whether students, career changers, or those new to the cloud—build job-ready skills and pursue opportunities in the digital economy. AWS also partners with local organizations to help connect learners with hiring opportunities.
“Businesses in Indonesia are keen to innovate with AI, and the high level of adoption underscores a tremendous potential for Indonesia’s economy. However, the research has uncovered how serious barriers remain, especially for larger enterprises, to deepen their use of AI,” said Anthony Amni, Country Manager, AWS Indonesia. “To maintain Indonesia’s competitive edge in the global AI stage, it is essential that governments and industry take the right steps in addressing the barriers businesses face. At AWS, we remain committed to support the broad adoption of generative AI, through our infrastructure investments and skills training initiatives.”