New Southbound Policy Portal

 

A unique conference focusing on the potential of Indonesian semiconductor industry development took place at the Research Building of Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS) on August 13th. The topics covered in the conference ranged from the semiconductor fabrication process to the circular economy, as well as sustainable development goals through the semiconductor applications including artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. It aims to carry out the utmost target of exploring as deeply and exhaustively possible the potential opportunities and challenges of semiconductor industry in Indonesia. It will also draw a road map for Indonesia to bandwagon the worldwide semiconductor industry supply chain restructuring.

The conference was initiated by the Taipei Economic and Trade Office in Surabaya and the US Consulate General in Surabaya. Both sides decided to conduct a conference internationally under the background of the Taiwan-Indonesia Innovation Center which is affiliated with the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology, in association with ITS and Widya Mandala Catholic University. This conference reveals the value of joint efforts among Taiwan, the US and Indonesia.

Why is Taiwan so important in the worldwide semiconductor industry? The irrefutable facts are that 95% of the most advanced chips and 90% of AI servers in the world are made in Taiwan and by Taiwanese companies. In Taiwan, the clusters of semiconductor industry have been formed in science and industrial parks from the north to the south. The delegation from Taiwan to the conference led by the National Taiwan University of Science and Technology consists of experts from the National Council of Science and Technology and universities and CEOs of corporations in the field of high-tech and renewable energy. They exchange views and opinions with the Indonesian and American counterparts.

The US participants include the representatives from Intel, AMD and Micron, in addition to Dr. Taufik of California Polytechnic State University and Dr. Hongbin Yu of Arizona State University. During the conference, Micron explains and promotes its program to recruit the Indonesian talents to convey their internship at the Micron’s Taiwan branch and plant. Once again, this program demonstrates Taiwan’s crucial position in fostering tomorrow’s engineers in the semiconductor sector. Taiwan welcomes young talents from all over the world to pursue their higher education, conduct their research and start a career upon a job in Taiwan.

Being part of the Indonesian “semiconductor task force” and “chip design collaboration center,” ITS is undeniably the key stakeholder and partner of the ICT industry in the eastern regions of Indonesia. During the conference sessions, scholars from ITS survey the current status regarding semiconductor research and talent cultivation for semiconductor manufacturing in Indonesia. ITS also invites and welcomes researchers from other universities in Indonesia which are also members of the two aforementioned organizations to join the other experts at the conference.

The conference is under attendance by a plethora of important individuals from all three countries. The opening remarks are made respectively by Representative John Chen from Taipei Economic and Trade Office in Jakarta, Consul General Christopher Green from US Consulate General in Surabaya, Chairman Ted Chen from NTUST Global Alumni Association, Director for Research and Innovation Funding Ajeng Arum Sari from National Research and Innovation Agency and Rector Bambang Pramujati from ITS. Representative Chen and Consul General Green both commend the success and significant meaning of this international event and express the common intention from each side to continue the related cooperation with Indonesia.

However, this is only the beginning. The cooperating trio between Taiwan, the US and Indonesia on the issues of semiconductor industry is a forward-looking model of its kind. It represents a consortium among Taiwan, the US and Indonesia based on mutual interests. Taiwan has her vision and mission to take the lead in fulfilling the duty of shaping a resilient, reliable and clean semiconductor supply chain. Taiwan is no doubt an ideal partner for Indonesia’s development of the semiconductor industry in the near future.