Silicon Valley brings out the vibrant side of Indonesia

Appearing relaxed in a long-sleeve batik shirt with first-lady Iriana in a simple pink hijab and red traditional Indonesian garb, Jokowi visited the headquarters of US technology giants Google, Facebook, Twitter and Plug and Play in Silicon Valley and downtown San Francisco on Wednesday to spread the message that Indonesia is serious about expanding into the digital economy.
From playing zero-gravity table tennis in virtual reality with Facebook chief executive officer and founder Mark Zuckerberg to writing on the office walls of Facebook and Plug and Play, Jokowi appeared to be having fun on his visit as well as showing his strong interest in the technology, innovation and digital sector.
“Start it up together, prosper together,” Jokowi wrote on Plug and Play’s office wall, in a clear sign of support for start-up companies to take on a larger role in the economy.
“I hope Plug and Play can take part in Indonesia’s vision to be Southeast Asia’s biggest digital economy, one that will reach US$130 billion by 2020,” he said during a meeting with Plug and Play CEO and founder Saeed Amidi at its Silicon Valley headquarters.
Plug and Play connects start-ups with corporations and invests in 100 companies every year, including Dropbox, with $3.5 billion (Bt125 billion) in funds raised by its start-ups since 2006.
Along with the $130-billion target, Jokowi envisages the birth of 1,000 “technopreneurs” in Southeast Asia’s largest economy with more than 250 million people sprawled across the archipelago.
His administration has allowed foreign e-commerce players valued at more than 100 billion rupiah (Bt263 million) to open businesses fully in Indonesia and teamed up with financial authorities to support funding for information-technology companies and small and medium-sized enterprises, which are the heart of the president’s “digital economy” vision.
At Googleplex in Mountain View, California – where Jokowi had Indonesian food for lunch with more than a dozen Indonesian workers – the president was greeted by CEO Sundar Pichai, whose company agreed to train 100,000 Indonesian mobile developers before 2020 through universities, online and in working groups across the country.
Google has also recently lowered the minimum price for applications, games and products on Google Play, from 12,000 rupiah to 3,000 rupiah so developers can reach more users.
Jokowi’s fresh and vibrant outlook on Indonesia’s economy, which is still somewhat reliant on commodity exports, was reflected in his message inscribed at Facebook’s headquarters.
“Peaceful together in harmony,” Jokowi wrote with pink chalk on the chalkboard wall at one of the world’s largest companies, with much laughter and light moments with Zuckerberg – who toured Tanah Abang market in Jakarta with the president in late 2014 – as well as a dozen or so Indonesian workers.
At Twitter’s headquarters in downtown San Francisco, where Jokowi met CEO and co-founder Jack Dorsey, the president was quick to record a live video of his activities there through the Periscope app that directly uploads to his Twitter account @jokowi.
There he also live-tweeted: “We invite @twitter to spread the word of tolerance and world peace.”
Wahyu Dinata Setiawan, 34, and Karl Karnadi, 33, both Indonesian workers at Facebook, said they appreciated the government’s support of start-ups, adding that they were thinking of opening their own business in Indonesia in the future.
Jokowi’s visit to the tech giants’ headquarters was part of his official agenda after attending the two-day US-Asean Summit that ended on Tuesday.