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Microsoft to Invest $1.7 bln in Cloud, AI in Indonesia

(FILES) The logo of Microsoft US multinational technology corporation is seen on the opening day of the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) audiovisual and systems integration exhibition in Barcelona on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
(FILES) The logo of Microsoft US multinational technology corporation is seen on the opening day of the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) audiovisual and systems integration exhibition in Barcelona on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
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Microsoft to Invest $1.7 bln in Cloud, AI in Indonesia

(FILES) The logo of Microsoft US multinational technology corporation is seen on the opening day of the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) audiovisual and systems integration exhibition in Barcelona on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)
(FILES) The logo of Microsoft US multinational technology corporation is seen on the opening day of the Integrated Systems Europe (ISE) audiovisual and systems integration exhibition in Barcelona on January 31, 2023. (Photo by Pau BARRENA / AFP)

Microsoft will invest $1.7 billion over the next four years into expanding cloud services and artificial intelligence in Indonesia, including building data centers, visiting chief executive Satya Nadella said on Tuesday.
Jakarta is Nadella's first stop on a trip to Southeast Asian countries aimed at promoting the US company's generative AI technology. He will go to Malaysia and Thailand later this week, Reuters said.
Microsoft's investment will "bring the latest and greatest AI infrastructure to Indonesia," Nadella said.
"We're going to lead this wave in terms of AI infrastructure that's needed," he added.
Nadella met outgoing President Joko Widodo and his cabinet ministers earlier on Tuesday to discuss joint AI research and talent development, Communications Minister Budi Arie Setiadi told reporters.
Widodo suggested Microsoft base its data centers on the resort island of Bali or in the new capital city Nusantara, which is still under construction in the jungle of Borneo, the minister said.
Microsoft will train 2.5 million people in Southeast Asia in AI use by 2025, Nadella said, including 840,000 in Indonesia.
Microsoft is trying to expand its support for the development of AI globally, including with a $2.9 billion investment in cloud and AI infrastructure in Japan and a $1.5 billion investment in UAE-based AI firm G42.
Nadella's Jakarta visit comes two weeks after Apple Inc CEO Tim Cook met Widodo and said he would look into building a manufacturing facility in Indonesia.
Indonesia has a huge, tech-savvy population, making the Southeast Asian nation a key target market for tech-related investment.
Last week, Microsoft beat Wall Street estimates for third-quarter revenue and profit, driven by gains from adoption of artificial intelligence across its cloud services.

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After Years of Survival, China’s Huawei Returns to Revenue Peak 

Logo of Huawei is seen in front of the local offices of Huawei in Warsaw, Poland January 11, 2019. (Reuters)
Logo of Huawei is seen in front of the local offices of Huawei in Warsaw, Poland January 11, 2019. (Reuters)
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After Years of Survival, China’s Huawei Returns to Revenue Peak 

Logo of Huawei is seen in front of the local offices of Huawei in Warsaw, Poland January 11, 2019. (Reuters)
Logo of Huawei is seen in front of the local offices of Huawei in Warsaw, Poland January 11, 2019. (Reuters)

China's Huawei is expected to claim triumph over US sanctions at its upcoming annual results, bolstered by its software push, progress in chips and booming smart-driving technology business that has helped it move out of "survival mode".

The company is set to confirm that it took 860 billion yuan ($118 billion) in revenues last year, just shy of its 2020 peak of 891 billion yuan, before chip stockpiles dwindled and US restrictions cut consumer business revenues in half. Its chairman disclosed its 2024 revenue in February.

It will also report full-year profit. In October, it posted a 13.7% drop in nine-month net profit.

Huawei's executives have previously said Washington's moves pushed the company into "survival mode", driving it to explore new business lines that have largely involved creating products that can serve as alternatives to Western technology and partnering with local Chinese authorities and government-backed firms.

The company has in past months struck a more confident tone, with founder Ren Zhengfei telling Chinese President Xi Jinping in May that concerns China had about a lack of homegrown chips and operating systems had eased.

Huawei has not disclosed in detail its revenue drivers, but has said that its consumer business has returned to growth while its foray into autos has developed rapidly.

The company likely shipped over 45 million phones in 2024, up by 25% or more on a year earlier, though yield rates on chips remain a constraint, according to consultancy Isaiah Research.

"Huawei has already shown incredible resilience in the face of this national state-led effort, and this process has arguably forced Chinese firms across the IT stack to become more innovative and collaborative," said Paul Triolo, a partner at DGA-Albright Stonebridge Group.

"This is one of the legacies of Huawei's re-emergence as a technology powerhouse."

Huawei declined to comment.

In the wake of US sanctions, Huawei moved into exploring areas such as building 5G infrastructure for mines and supplying energy storage systems to data centers.

Cut off from Google's Android and Oracle, it built its own operating system HarmonyOS, which it says is running on over a billion devices, as well as an internal software management system it calls "MetaERP".

Banned from using US semiconductor technology, it has created its own advanced chips including ones that compete with top artificial intelligence chipmaker Nvidia's products.

The company has also become a prominent supplier of advanced autonomous driving technology, working with state-owned automakers to revive themselves as viable electric vehicle makers.

Huawei has worked with Dongfeng Motor-backed Seres to sell Aito-branded cars, with sales more than tripling last year.

Its best-selling models M7 and M9 are equipped with Huawei's advanced driver assistance systems and sold in Huawei's showrooms nationwide.

There are similar projects with Chery, BAIC, JAC Group and SAIC Group.

Going forward, the company has said it wants to integrate artificial intelligence into its industrial communications services and to build out its software systems on connected devices, according to state media.

Huawei has also signaled it intends to compete more aggressively in overseas markets for its smartphones, having launched its foldable Mate XT smartphone in Malaysia in February in a glitzy event.

Without full access to Android, it is unlikely to regain its former position in Western consumer markets, though its data infrastructure presence has grown in areas such as the Middle East, Triolo said.

"Huawei's international presence will be more of a patchwork affair, but in some areas, like an alternative AI stack, it could eventually dominate in key markets."