President Jokowi Meets Elon Musk at SpaceX Facility

KOMPAS.com - President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo met with US billionaire Elon Musk at his rocket company SpaceX in Boca Chica, Texas on Saturday, May 14, State News Antara reported. 

The President arrived at the Stargate SpaceX Building at around 10:30 a.m. local time and was greeted personally by Musk, who is also Tesla's CEO. Jokowi toured SpaceX’s rocket production facility.

Jokowi said in a statement on Sunday, May 15 that the visit was a follow-up to his directives to Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.

"It is a follow-up to my directives, so we can talk with Musk regarding investment, technology, and innovation [development]. Thus, I am here to meet Must in person to discuss [possible] future cooperation," he said.

dok. Sekretariat Presiden Indonesia's President Joko Widodo (right) meets with SpaceX owner and Tesla's CEO Elon Musk at his rocket company in Boca Chica, Texas on Saturday, May 14, 2022.

Hence, he invited the corporation’s founder to visit Indonesia.

"I think he is really interested in coming to Indonesia soon," the President added.
Musk said that hopefully, he could visit Indonesia in November 2022.

"Thank you for the invitation," he said.

Also read: Indonesian Chief Minister Meets Elon Musk at Tesla Headquarters in Texas

He also stated that he was really interested in the future of Indonesia which has various great potential.

"Hence, Tesla and SpaceX will explore some collaborations with Indonesia," the billionaire said.
The large population of the country which continues to grow is one of the most important potentials of Indonesia, according to him.

“It is good because we will need a lot of people [human resources] in the future," he added.

Digital economy investment in Indonesia

Meanwhile, on the sidelines of the US-ASEAN Special Summit in Washington DC, the President also met with other US prominent business leaders. He invited them to support Indonesia’s digital economy potential and seriousness in facilitating fair and beneficial development for all.

He affirmed that Indonesia's digital economy valuation is forecast to reach $146 billion or almost half of the $330 billion in the Southeast Asian region.

"In Southeast Asia, the value of the digital economy is predicted to reach $330 billion by 2025, and in Indonesia, the digital economy is growing at 20 percent per year to reach $146 billion in 2025," Jokowi said in a televised message on Friday.

The president also highlighted the digital economic climate in Indonesia, with 2,346 start-up companies currently, or the fifth-largest in the world.

Also read: Indonesia, Tesla Ink Deal on Confidentiality Agreement

Among these companies, Indonesia has two startups that have currently acquired "decacorn" status, or a valuation equivalent to $10 billion, and eight others that have become unicorns, or a valuation of up to $1 billion.

President Jokowi invited US entrepreneurs to contribute to developing the digital economy in Indonesia.

"I really look forward to the contribution of US business leaders in developing digital infrastructure, facilitating digital capacity-building, and supporting Indonesia in entering the global value chain through digitalization," he emphasized.

During the visit, President Jokowi was accompanied by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, State Secretary Minister Pratikno, as well as Indonesia’s Ambassador to the US Rosan Roeslani, among others.

The president was in the US from May 10, 2022, to attend the US-ASEAN Special Summit.

Source: State News Antara