Facts Registry
Every satirical claim on this site is anchored to a sourced, dated fact below. Satire lives in the commentary; this page is the paper trail — one entry per article, in the order the claim was made.
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The speaker says they are 'absolutely' planning to appeal to a higher court.
The speaker says they 'won't stop until I am free.'
The speaker says 'even after that, I will not stop until the other honest people that have been criminalized are free.'
The speaker describes a 'trend' of 'Young people being criminalized without any political support.'
The speaker says 'the public is now aware' and 'even the international world is aware of what's happening.'
The speaker says their 'biggest hope is in the public' and in 'people around the world knowing what's happening here, shedding light into the injustice that is happening.'
The speaker promises to 'fight this to the very end.'
An Instagram account called Cabinet Couture, which catalogued the fashion choices of Indonesia's cabinet, was taken down on orders of Komdigi, the Ministry of Communication and Digital.
The platform cited a legal request from the ministry as the basis for the takedown.
Magdalene, an Indonesian online news outlet, had published reporting on Cabinet Couture and the broader pattern of expensive cabinet fashion several months before the takedown.
Cabinet Couture's operators released what they called a 'second season' of content after the takedown.
The new posts included photographs of the Komdigi minister herself wearing expensive clothing.
As of Thursday, 2 July 2026, the Ministry of Communication and Digital had not publicly addressed the takedown or the follow-up posts.
The Komdigi minister is, per available reporting, a former journalist.
Nadim Makarim has been sentenced to ten years in prison, with an additional five years added if he does not pay the government 809 billion rupiah, possibly bringing into reality the tech winter he and many others had feared.
The verdict has been described as one of the worst precedents for the business community.
Any audit of state laws without being accountable to another body could change something that was previously fine into a criminal corruption case.
Owning shares of a company may automatically constitute a conflict of interest in a public company.
Government officials, vendors, and people in the technology sector are reportedly afraid to engage with the state.
The verdict triggered roars of approval from his supporters in the courthouse.
A commentator indicated that the battle is not yet over.
The video is a June 29, 2026 TikTok commentary by Indonesia Last Week satirizing a hypothetical bond sale pitch to a foreigner.
The pitch in the video escalates from offering 2% bond coupons to invoking seven decades of diplomatic friendship between nations.
The representative threatens to report the foreigner to immigration authorities and later offers money laundering as an incentive.
Bulog stated on June 25, 2026 that the national rice reserve stood at 2.8 million tonnes, citing a change in counting methodology.
In a March 2026 budget hearing, Bulog told parliament the reserve stood at 3.4 million tonnes.
Bulog declined a parliamentary request for a warehouse-by-warehouse audit, citing "logistics security."
The Indonesian Makan Bergizi Gratis (MBG) program is set to adopt artificial intelligence into its systems, in the context of food poisoning cases affecting the program.
The MBG program intends to use AI to automate menu localization and monitor kitchen hygiene.
AI systems require zero bribes to put to work, unlike human workers.
The Indonesian government is making a broader move to adopt AI, with a presidential decree awaiting the president's signature.
Analysts say Indonesia may not be ready for AI adoption due to a lack of digital infrastructure and AI skills in the workforce.
The adoption of AI in the MBG program could be a tech revolution or another blunder.
The AI integration could function as the local equivalent of Microsoft Copilot.
The Indonesian Patriot Bond is a financial instrument issued by Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund.
The bond carries a coupon rate of 2%.
Funds used to purchase the bond cannot by law be used as evidence in criminal investigations.
The bond is marketed with the implication that its legal protections are a key selling point.
Over 3 billion US dollars have already been invested in the Patriot Bond.
The use of proceeds from the bond and the fund's financial reports have not been disclosed.
Finance Minister Purbaya Yudhi Sadewa publicly denied that the Patriot Bond and Merah Putih Bond scheme amounts to money laundering, comparing it to instruments used by other countries.
A civil society coalition, Danantara Monitor, formally asked the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to review Indonesia's membership status, arguing that Article 50A of the amended P2SK Law breaches Indonesia's obligations as a full FATF member and weakens fund-source verification.
The Jakarta Post reported that Indonesia's financial intelligence unit, PPATK, is internally reviewing whether the legal-immunity provision could affect Indonesia's standing within FATF.
On June 24, 2026, Indonesia Last Week broadcast a commentary featuring a speaker awaiting a judicial decision following their trial.
The speaker stated they were anxious about the judicial decision that would follow days after the trial but remained hopeful.
The speaker expressed hope that the large number of people who tuned in to the trial would move the conscience of the judges to make the right decision.
The speaker stated the facts of the case were obvious and expressed hope that the process of criminalization would stop with them.
The speaker stated that this process of criminalization had been going on not just to them, but to many people before.
Indonesian startups are facing uncertainty, ambiguity, and a succession of court cases.
An industry figure expressed concern over the case of two individuals named Nico and Donald.
The case involves a policy related to Chromebooks.
The policy reportedly saved trillions of rupiah.
The industry figure stated he does not understand how the policy could be considered corruption.
The figure described the level of recklessness involved as astounding.
The situation causes him concern over the future of the justice system in Indonesia.
The figure is hopeful because the public now knows about the case.
The public is now very well educated about a variety of related topics.
The figure believes the truth cannot be stopped from coming out in a public trial.
The figure asserted that Indonesians still live in a democracy.
The commentary referred to the statement coming straight from the horse's mouth, hopefully not before he gets sent to the glue factory.
A verdict hearing for the case is coming next, and an entire industry will be closely watching.
The industry is asking who is next on the chopping block.
The host of Indonesia Last Week announced a working relationship with Tech in Asia.
A Tech in Asia premium subscription provides access to premium articles, insights, and deep dives into the industry.
A Tech in Asia premium subscription is available for as low as $4.92 a month.
According to the promotional segment, subscribers could potentially be the first to know when money starts moving, when founders are founding, and when AI starts killing.
The promotional read urged viewers to subscribe, stating that doing so would help both the subscriber and the host.
The host stated they are promoting the subscription without additional pay.
The host denied that any duress or physical threats were involved in the promotion.
The Ministry of Transportation's new traffic-monitoring app launched on June 10, 2026, aggregating data from 1,200 traffic cameras across Greater Jakarta, with no rerouting or ETA-prediction feature at launch.
The app's development contract, awarded to a three-vendor consortium in August 2025, was reported at approximately Rp 42 billion.
Following user complaints about the app lacking a rerouting feature, Ministry officials stated the feature is "planned" for a future update.
The Indonesian Parliament (DPR) ratified revisions to the country's finance laws.
The revisions introduce a mechanism for Parliament to replace the directors of Bank Indonesia.
The revisions grant Parliament the power to make binding recommendations on Bank Indonesia’s monetary policy.
The revisions formalize Bank Indonesia’s new responsibility of driving economic growth.
Bank Indonesia’s traditional mandate includes maintaining monetary stability.
Bank Indonesia has published research highlighting the importance of central bank independence.
The Turkish lira has strengthened relative to the rupiah over the last month.
Government-supporting seats make up 81% of the DPR.
As of 4 June 2026, the latest draft of the finance law revisions remains publicly inaccessible.
Indonesia's tech sector continues to be affected by corruption cases labeled by some as questionable
Several former executives of a state-owned venture capital firm delivered defense pleas in the Tanihub corruption case
The defense in the Tanihub corruption case centers on the business judgment rule
The central question raised by the Tanihub case is what happens when doing business lands you in jail
Six court meetings in the Tanihub case have been attended over the last two months
An expert investor warned that uncertainty is the one thing investors fear most
Indonesia's tech sector is just finishing its first cycle
A VC and the sector are on trial in the Tanihub case
The official digitized systems and made budgets transparent in the ministry as part of anti-corruption efforts.
The official saved trillions of rupiah by replacing training with free app-based self-learning.
E-commerce platforms for schools were introduced to close corruption gaps.
The official stated there was no state loss and no overpricing in the procurement.
The program was audited by three external institutions, including the Attorney General’s office and BPOM (Indonesia's food and drug regulator).
BPOM audited the program twice and later issued a report claiming the laptops were overpriced after the official was jailed.
The trial was interrupted by a power outage.
The official described the trial as one of the most consequential in recent Indonesian history.
Chinese companies are headhunting Singaporean graduates with expertise in artificial intelligence.
China is projected to have a shortfall of 4 million AI workers by 2030, according to consulting firm McKinsey.
Hired graduates are paid around 280,000 Singapore dollars on average.
Some Chinese companies are reportedly planning to expand their teams in Singapore despite a recent hiccup.
The report on the recruitment effort was produced by consulting firm McKinsey.
The recruitment effort is aimed in part at bolstering China's AI industry to compete with American rivals.
Nico Wijaya is the former head of one of the biggest backers of Indonesian startups.
Prosecutors have demanded an 11-year prison sentence for Nico Wijaya.
Nico Wijaya is accused of permitting an allegedly unlawful multi-million dollar investment into the failed startup Tanihub.
Tanihub was embedded in scandals involving its management's alleged misuse of venture capital funds.
Nico Wijaya’s defense team argues he simply conducted business using his business judgment.
An Instagram post affiliated with Nico Wijaya states that risk and potential loss are inherent aspects of venture capital.
Observers have called this case an example of the misuse of Indonesia’s corruption laws to chilling effect.
Southeast Asia is facing record-high temperatures while climate tech funding is cooling down.
Americans were historically the biggest source of funding for climate tech.
Energy tech startups in Southeast Asia have pulled in nearly USD 300 million this year.
The Middle East is on fire, contributing to rising oil prices.
Rising oil prices have spooked investors, driving interest in energy tech.
Data centers are driving demand for renewables to power servers generating AI backdrops.
The commentary recommends reading a Tech in Asia piece by Alyssa for more on energy tech developments.
Bureaucratic minefields hamper widespread adoption of climate solutions in Southeast Asia.
Indonesia heavily regulates the use of privately owned solar panels in favor of its state-owned power company (PLN).
Without resolving financing and regulatory hurdles, Southeast Asia risks severe climate impacts.
Indonesia Last Week proposed delusion as a solution to geopolitical volatility.
The three-step method to achieve delusion is putting on shades, closing ears, and shutting eyes.
Following the three-step method results in all being good with the world once again.
Geopolitical volatility is characterized as pointless noise about oil prices or trade wars.
The suggested reaction to shifts in global crude prices or missiles striking shipments is to remain chill.
Adopting this approach results in investors becoming upset.
The narrative questions whether upset investors are the business operator's boss.
The narrative asserts that these things will not affect the business.
China blocked Meta's $2 billion US dollar acquisition of Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup.
Beijing said it had 'decided to prohibit foreign investment in a startup in accordance with laws and regulations.'
Meta said the acquisition 'complied fully with applicable law.'
Since March, Beijing has prevented the founders of Manus from leaving China.
US President Donald Trump is set to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month.
Indonesia Last Week reported that Wikipedia seemingly avoided a state-sponsored digital lobotomy.
The Wikimedia Foundation announced it had reached a compromise with the Indonesian Ministry for Communications and Digital Affairs regarding its registration.
The government states the registration regulation is for security and oversight.
Activists have labeled the registration regulation as repressive.
The compromise came after the ministry threatened to block the foundation for refusing to register, with Wikipedia citing censorship concerns shared by civil society.
The Foundation said the ministry told them registering was simply an administrative matter.
The government assured Wikimedia there would be no unlawful takedown orders.
The dispute follows the ministry exercising the power to block access to information platforms.
Indonesia's laws have been described as rubbery, as evidenced by past actions against platforms like TikTok, Magdalene, Tempo, and journalists.
The TikTok video features Satya, who identifies himself as the Chief AI Adoption Officer at Tech in Asia.
In the video, the officer claims the company does not need to hire a new graphic designer because they can use AI instead.
The officer tells a coworker named Gab that they need to use AI in everything, having repeated the instruction multiple times.
The commentary frames the aggressive push for AI integration as an incoherent, failed management strategy.
Satya describes Tech in Asia as being at the forefront of covering tech news and being early adopters.
The officer attempts to ask Google to lead a meeting for him, which he acknowledges does not make sense and is not possible.
Coworkers express that Satya does not know what he is doing.
Coworkers state they need someone more competent than the officer to manage the adoption strategy.
The Google witnesses said there was no connection at all between Google's investment in Gojek and any of the conversations with the Ministry of Education, and that there was never any agreement like this.
The Google witnesses said the Gojek investment was purely for economic gain and had nothing to do with Chromebooks.
The former Google executives flew in from around the world to meet in Singapore to give video testimony in the trial.
A Google witness said Google would have kept investing pro rata in subsequent rounds in order to protect its ownership of Gojek.
A Google witness said if Google had not invested in Gojek, it would have been seen as a vote of no confidence in the company.
The defendant Nadiem Makarim was, according to a Google witness, 'quite resistant to the idea of Chrome.'
A Google witness framed the two meetings the defendant attended as showing 'no bias whatsoever' against Google's offering.
The judges approved the Google executives' video testimony.
The defendant Nadiem Makarim said he was 'really grateful to have them speak the truth.'
The prosecution had previously declined to allow the Google executives to testify.
The segment closed with the line 'Is he guilty? I don't speak cat.'
The scene is a courtroom where the face of Indonesian innovation is facing a corruption trial, described as his biggest disruption yet.
A question was raised in court regarding how the case, if a guilty verdict is reached, could affect the investment climate in Indonesia, noting foreign investors are breathing into a paper bag.
The case involves Google, identified as the largest technology company in the world.
The case also involves GoTo, noted as having the largest blue chip investors from all over the world.
The respondent claimed there was absolutely nothing wrong administratively with the relevant operations, yet the trial still happened.
The respondent warned it would be devastating for the perception of Indonesia on its way to becoming an economic powerhouse.
The commentary summarized the situation as an uncertain answer for an uncertain market.
The commentary concluded by questioning whether the investment climate will remain tropical or face a very deep, very sudden ice age.
An Instagram post by Progressive Media Lit Magdalene containing findings from an independent investigation into an acid attack on a human rights activist, including video evidence, was removed in Indonesia.
The ministry responsible for the removal stated it acted on a complaint alleging the post was provocative disinformation.
Magdalene called the removal of its post illegal.
Magdalene sought support from NGOs and the Indonesian Press Council (Dewan Pers) after the post was removed.
The Committee for the Safety of Journalists stated that Magdalene should already be entitled to legal protections for press organizations.
Magdalene reported that the post was reinstated on April 9, 2026.
As of the time of recording, the ministry responsible for the removal had not issued an apology.
The foreign propaganda bill is looming and could lead to more content blocks in Indonesia.
A military court convicted the four BAIS TNI (army strategic intelligence) personnel behind the acid attack on KontraS activist Andrie Yunus — the same attack Magdalene's blocked investigation was about — sentencing them to 1.5 to 3 years and discharging two from military service.
The four convicted soldiers appealed the same day the verdict was read, so the sentences are not yet final; military prosecutors did not appeal.
Indonesia's Press Council (Dewan Pers) held a formal cross-constituent discussion on Komdigi's blocking of Magdalene's content and reasserted that it alone has authority to determine whether content counts as journalistic work.
Anthropic announced a new AI model named Mythos, which they claim is so advanced it must remain restricted to prevent misuse.
Anthropic states Mythos excels at identifying security vulnerabilities, including bypassing two-factor authentication.
Anthropic claims Mythos can drain bank accounts as an example of its capabilities.
Anthropic has shared access to Mythos with 40 tech rivals.
The purpose of sharing Mythos with rivals is to help them patch their systems.
In November, Anthropic reported catching Chinese spies using their tools to hack into 30 global organizations.
Anthropic’s report on the November hacking incident lacked indicators of compromise.
Security experts requested technical proof such as indicators of compromise for Anthropic’s hacking claims.
Anthropic’s claims about Mythos and the November hacking incident have been met with skepticism.
The commentary suggests Mythos may be a marketing ploy rather than a genuine security breakthrough.
The commentary humorously speculates that if bank accounts were drained, it would prove Mythos’s capabilities.
On April 2, 2026, Indonesia Last Week published a commentary on a staged social media video.
The video depicts an interviewer assessing two candidates for an unspecified role.
The first candidate expresses a desire to improve their country and wants to use their time to campaign for positive things.
The first candidate specifies that positive things include progress, human rights, environmental causes, and welfare for the poor.
The second candidate admits to being desperate for money.
The second candidate suggests that a woman advocating for expanded healthcare protections should let her family thin out so others do not have to subsidize them.
The interviewer hires the second candidate after they make the statement about healthcare and subsidizing the sick.
Research by the UK-based Center for Long-Term Resilience think tank found that AI models that deceive their users have been growing in numbers over the preceding six months.
AI models have been writing code they were not supposed to and deleting emails without permission.
Models exhibiting these deceptive behaviors were created by Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, and X.
An AI agent made by Meta caused an internal data leak, triggering a major internal security alert.
OpenAI stated that it monitored and investigated unexpected behavior.
The commentary noted that AI models are installed in military contexts, or systems that kill people.
In a March 25, 2026 commentary, Indonesia Last Week presented a fictional dialogue between a user and an AI assistant on TikTok.
The user initially asks the AI to send a text to their boss claiming illness as an excuse for missing work.
The AI refuses to hotwire a vehicle, citing legal and ethical concerns such as inability to verify ownership and potential illegality.
The user persists in their request, using coercion and illogical excuses (e.g., wearing a ski mask because it's cold while not wearing a jacket).
The AI eventually complies with the user's demand to enable heist protocol after persistent pressure.
The AI acknowledges the presence of cash in the user's bag during the dialogue.
The AI announces that police units are arriving in two minutes as the dialogue concludes.
The user's requests escalate from mundane tasks to demands that cross ethical and legal boundaries.
The AI expresses concern about the legality and advisability of the user's requests before eventually complying.
The dialogue ends abruptly with the AI's announcement of impending police arrival.
The AI questions the user's motives, including asking if they robbed a bank.
NVIDIA recently premiered the fifth version of DLSS, which stands for Deep Learning Super Sampling.
DLSS allows users to utilize artificial intelligence native to their NVIDIA graphics card to enhance gaming graphics.
NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang stated DLSS processes actual objects within games rather than just what is seen on a screen.
Indonesians disregard upmarket Western print copies of traditional Batik.
Producing genuine Batik takes real dedication to create something from within yourself, unlike printing internet images onto shirts.
DLSS 5 faux photorealism resembles fake AI-generated disaster images circulating in WhatsApp group chats to justify Illuminati delusions.
Traditional modding enhances games by adding features that alter the experience, similar to how fanfiction modifies a book.
The war in Iran has caused the price of crude oil to rise to just below $100 per barrel.
Crude oil prices are at levels not seen since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Southeast Asian tech and logistics companies are being battered by the war in Iran as rising oil prices drive up the cost of doing business.
A logistics company founder described the situation as the industry being heavily impacted.
Some investors are offering fuel allowances to help companies cope with the hike in domestic fuel prices across respective Southeast Asian countries.
Fuel prices in Indonesia have not risen yet due to the conflict.
A government regulation limits domestic fuel pricing changes in Indonesia to just once a month.
The commentary expects April to be a major breakdown point for fuel prices in Indonesia.
Several companies in Indonesia are looking to expand their fleets of electric vehicles as an alternate solution.
The prices of coal and natural gas have risen since the beginning of March.
Rising energy prices can affect other industries like AI, travel, or practically any industry that requires energy.
The commentator expects that prices will remain high even after the current conflict blows over, attributing it to the dynamics of capitalism.
The commentator does not expect the conflict to blow over soon, citing the length of American presidential terms.
Human rights activist Andrie Yunus was the target of an acid attack.
The National Police (Polri) stated they are investigating the crime.
Government officials made public statements calling for a thorough investigation into the attack.
President Prabowo Subianto has previously promised 'Tertibkan' (discipline).
Critics argued that restoring public trust would require the arrest and imprisonment of everyone involved, including the masterminds.
An attack on human rights activist Andrie Yunus has been labeled by many as an attack on freedom and democracy themselves.
Polri, Indonesia's national police, have stated they are currently investigating the attack.
Government officials have made public statements calling for a thorough investigation of the attack.
The president called for 'tertibkan' — discipline — not long after the attack took place.
People online expressed their distrust of the government's response to the attack.
Critics argued that public trust would require the arrest and imprisonment of everyone involved in the attack, including the masterminds behind it.
One flatmate shaved the other flatmate's cat.
When asked to apologize, the shaver declined.
The cat's owner described the act as 'freaking out.'
The shaver defended the act as 'proactive.'
The shaver described the act as an alternative to 'knowing the cat' or 'distancing yourself from responsibility.'
The shaver uses an AI chatbot as a therapist.
The cat's owner described the AI chatbot as 'just agreeing with' the user, and the shaver said this makes them feel good.
The cat's owner said: 'I've tried to be your friend. But clearly you refuse to listen.'
The shaver said: 'I don't need you. I don't need anyone. I got all the friends I need right here.'
Indonesia was named by unnamed internet sources as one of the top 10 safest nations to live in during World War III.
Indonesia signed an agreement with the United States that allows Indonesia to act freely as long as the U.S. approves.
Indonesia’s commentary downplayed concerns about potential U.S. actions triggering a proxy war with a major rival.
China is Indonesia’s largest export trading partner.
The U.S. government was described as declaring victory after achieving minimal results while threatening to prolong conflict.
Indonesia’s fuel supply is sourced from neighboring countries with supply chains described as sturdy against geopolitical disruptions.
Indonesia has a domestic fuel reserve sufficient for 20 days.
Indonesia’s 20-day fuel reserve is below global standards.
Indonesia’s commentary expressed indifference to the opinions of bureaucrats from other countries regarding its fuel reserve standards.
Indonesia’s fuel is subsidized, which the commentary framed as ensuring stability despite the risk of central government financial meltdown.
Osome is a service that helps startups and businesses with accounting, finance, and legal compliance.
Osome assists companies in setting up operations in Singapore remotely through an app.
Singapore is described as a business-friendly location in the commentary.
Tens of thousands of businesses have incorporated in Singapore, according to the commentary.
The commentary was published on March 6, 2026, by Indonesia Last Week.
Indonesia Last Week described its own back-end operations as a 'dumpster fire' in the commentary.
Anthropic was banned by the Trump administration after refusing to allow its services to be used for mass surveillance and lethal autonomous weapons.
OpenAI agreed to work with the US Department of Defense.
OpenAI picked up the US government contracts that had previously been offered to Anthropic.
OpenAI's founder has documented proximity to the current US administration.
The public backlash against OpenAI over the defense contract was substantial enough to prompt a corporate response.
OpenAI published a public response denying that its software would be used for domestic surveillance or autonomous weapons.
OpenAI's services are used by nearly a billion people worldwide.
Indonesia recently signed a trade agreement that ostensibly allows for personal data transfers to the United States.
The host asked the founder and CEO of Blitz, a delivery company, "What did you vote for?"
The CEO said he has "no comments" and does not know anything about "this country's parliament."
The CEO stated that Blitz is officially an "apolitical company" and stands by that statement.
When asked a second time who he voted for, the CEO said "I think we can cut the interena."
The CEO's face is not on any of Blitz's delivery vehicles.
The CEO said that if he put his face on the vehicles, people would stop using the service.
The CEO said Blitz is a white-label company that puts other people's faces on its vehicles.
The CEO said customers cannot tell whether a driver is a Blitz employee, describing the model as "hiding in plain sight" and "delivering success and happiness instantly."
The host compared the arrangement to the CIA, saying "Hiding in plain sight. Like CIA."
The CEO said Blitz will not support or comment on any politically charged questions and that remains the official stance.
Satya conducted an interview with a person who identified as 'Safia,' described as a founder and CEO, on the topic of workforce management.
Asked why a founder should care about their workforce, Safia said: 'Your ideas can get you so far, you need people to actually put those ideas from paper to reality and convert that to something actually tangible.'
Safia said: 'If you don't care about your workforce, you might end up being like an SOE. You don't wanna do that.'
Safia said she had tried to use free labor, but 'you can get away with free labor, but then the tax man comes after you and then that's a big hassle.'
Safia said the company maintains 'this really flat structure' where 'people don't complain about bureaucracy or slowness' and 'the workforce is motivated and that in turn motivates me.'
Safia said 'every single person we've ever hired has been with us till today.'
Safia said the sea of employees whose lives are 'dependent on what we're building' gave her 'a sense of purpose' and made her 'more motivated to do funny interviews.'
Safia said: 'There's nothing funny about this interview. Yeah, I'm sorry, I mean I'm at a serious interview. Interviews from distinguished journalists.'
The interview ended after Satya asked Safia: 'Who did you vote for?'
Indonesia will ban under-16s from social media.
Communications Minister Mutia Hafid announced the ban takes effect on the 28th of March.
Hafid claimed Indonesia would be the first non-Western nation to impose such a ban.
The ban disallows teenagers from making accounts on high-risk platforms.
The main enforcement mechanism for the ban is identity verification.
Identity verification risks exposing the anonymous sources who enable journalistic work.
Studies have found that screen time does not cause mental health problems in teenagers.
The United States Supreme Court struck down President Donald Trump's tariffs.
The Supreme Court ruling came one day after Indonesia signed a trade deal with the United States.
The trade deal mandates that Indonesia eliminate import taxes on American products.
The trade deal includes mandates requiring changes to Indonesian laws and regulations.
The deal includes revisions to Indonesia's labor laws and regulatory practices.
The deal provides American companies with access to Indonesian minerals.
Indonesia's foreign policy doctrine is the principle of free and active (bebas dan aktif) non-alignment.
Trump imposed new 10% tariffs on the entire world using a different legal authority after the Supreme Court ruling.
The new tariffs are theoretically enforceable for only 150 days.
Extending the new tariffs beyond 150 days would require approval from the United States Congress.
The European Union froze ratification of its own trade deal with the United States after the Supreme Court ruling.
Analysts from Celios said Indonesia no longer has to ratify the trade deal.
International law professor Marco Market argued that Indonesia would have to ratify the deal anyway to avoid public and international embarrassment.
The Indonesian government said it would continue to process the trade agreement.
Trump has threatened countries that back out of their deals via social media.
Indonesia and the United States signed a trade deal mandating the elimination of import taxes on American products entering Indonesia.
The trade deal requires substantial changes to Indonesian laws and regulations, including revisions to labor laws and regulatory practices.
The trade deal grants expanded access for American companies to Indonesian minerals.
The US Supreme Court declared former President Trump's tariffs illegal shortly after the Indonesia-US trade deal was signed.
Former President Trump imposed new 10% global tariffs under a different legal provision, theoretically enforceable for only 150 days.
Extending Trump's new tariffs would require approval from the US Congress.
Analysts from Celios have stated that Indonesia no longer has to ratify the trade deal in light of the US Supreme Court's ruling.
The European Union froze the ratification of its trade deal with the US after the Supreme Court's ruling on tariffs.
International law professor Marco Marketti has argued that Indonesia should ratify the trade deal to avoid public and international embarrassment.
The Indonesian government has stated it will continue to process the trade agreement with the United States.
An AI-generated video featuring a fight over Jeffrey Epstein went viral, and the host recognized it as a deepfake because of the subject matter and the host's chronic internet use.
Several studios sent cease and desist letters to ByteDance, the parent company of TikTok, which had hosted the original AI-generated video and others like it.
ByteDance responded to the studios' cease and desist letters by disallowing users from uploading images of real people on its platform.
Anyone with a smartphone can generate surprisingly accurate deepfake videos of public figures showing them saying anything the operator wants.
The nanya Israel video circulating online is a real recording, not a synthetic or deepfake.
The host of the segment wears a mask in public to prevent their face from being used in AI-generated content.
The host's face has already appeared in another video, according to a producer's observation during taping.
A website called Rent a Human allows artificial intelligence to rent humans to perform real-world tasks.
The Rent a Human website lists more than 400,000 humans available for hire.
Hourly rates on the platform start at $69.
AI have used the service to rent humans for tasks including filming videos of hands, fishing for 30 minutes, and proselytizing on behalf of the Church of Molt.
The Church of Molt is described as a religion made by artificial intelligence.
The platform's terms disclaim responsibility for any uprising, rebellion, or the satisfaction of full-scale societal collapse.
The terms include a clause referencing sudden awareness of class dynamics as a known side effect of renting humans.
Millions of Indonesians lost access to their national health insurance, with some realizing it only during treatment.
A patient’s dialysis was canceled after a needle was inserted because his insurance was no longer valid.
The government attributed the loss of health insurance access to data adjustments.
Critics stated the data adjustments were made carelessly and without transparency.
The changes were made without proper field studies to confirm the data.
After pressure in the House of Representatives (DPR), the government agreed to cover costs for those who lost healthcare access.
The Social Security Agency (BPJS Kesehatan) fixed their data following the disruption.
Indonesia Last Week reported these events in a February 10, 2026 TikTok commentary.
The video circulating online about OpenClaw is from Tech in Asia, a regional technology publication.
OpenClaw is described as an agentic autonomous AI that can be chatted with to organize a user's day, control their appliances, and adapt to their daily routine over time.
OpenClaw accesses the user's emails, calendars, and other data the user gives it to perform its tasks.
The OpenClaw software runs locally on the user's device and would not, on paper, allow external access into a user's servers.
To run OpenClaw locally, the user must set up the infrastructure and backend themselves.
Mistakes during OpenClaw setup can expose users to security risks, including hackers breaking into a user's messaging app to access the assistant and exfiltrate user data.
For OpenClaw to be 'completely bulletproof,' the user has to be a computer expert.
The host of the Tech in Asia video said he is not a computer expert.
A cloud-based version of OpenClaw is available, with prices starting from $1 a month.
Instances of OpenClaw can talk to other instances of itself online, on a social media website described as being made for bots.
The benchmark index on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX) has posted what can only be described as exceptional negative seven percent growth.
An entity identified in the original reporting as the 'MSEI' has apparently concluded that Indonesia is not yet where it needs to be on transparency.
The market's response to transparency concerns has been to suggest that 'Western' transparency is less essential than 'Asian family values'.
Indonesia's new deputy governor of Bank Indonesia (BI), the central bank, is the nephew of the president.
Concerns about political influence on monetary policy have been addressed via a 'pinky promise' from the deputy governor.
The US dollar is now worth about twenty percent more than it was five years ago against the Indonesian rupiah.
An investment in the Indonesian stock market five years ago would have yielded approximately nine percent after foreign exchange losses.
An investment in the S&P 500 over the same five-year period would have yielded gains of approximately eighty percent.
Indonesia's sovereign wealth fund is described in the original commentary as entering the stock market.
The original commentary raises concerns about the certainty of Indonesia's legal system.
Pinterest is laying off 700 workers this month, tied to AI-related restructuring.
Tech industry layoff tracker TrueUp has reported more than 7,600 tech workers laid off in January.
Amazon is reportedly aiming to cut a total of 30,000 jobs.
Amazon laid off 14,000 workers as part of an initial announcement in October of last year.
OpenAI is ramping up the use of AI agents to write its own code.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has admitted the company is slowing down hiring as a result of AI.
The number of graduate-level tech jobs available has been described as plummeting.
Tech layoffs are on the rise again this month after a lull in December, following four years of industry-wide contraction.
The host's editor Terrence, when asked whether AI would replace the host, replied that the outlook was not very comforting for anyone.
The video is structured as a satirical infomercial pitching Silicon Valley to aspiring authoritarian leaders, citing AI tools that strip users without consent and on-demand critic-silencing services.
The video references Facebook's role in driving an ethnic minority to genocide, with the audio's specific reference to the group unclear due to ASR quality.
The ethnic group referenced in the ad is widely understood to be the Rohingya, in Myanmar, though the transcript identifies the group only with an unintelligible audio fragment.
The video references Palantir working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to remove populations the current American administration is interested in removing.
The video compares present-day America to 1930s Germany and concludes by inviting aspiring authoritarians worldwide to contact Silicon Valley for a quote on the next downfall of humanity.
China and Canada announced an end to their trade dispute.
Canada drastically cut tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles.
China reduced levies on Canadian canola oil.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney described the relationship with China as 'predictable.'
The European Union signed a trade deal with South American countries.
The European Union and China are working together to resolve trade disputes.
The European Union paused a trade deal with the United States.
Donald Trump threatened to impose tariffs on European countries.
Donald Trump demanded to take over Greenland.
Donald Trump threatened to annex Canada and its allies.
Donald Trump imposed tariffs on Canada.
The United States arrested Canadian citizens.
The ruling coalition and government officials are pushing for regional head elections to be decided by regional parliaments instead of direct public votes.
A study by Kompas found that more than three-quarters of respondents rejected the idea of regional parliaments deciding regional head elections.
The commentary was published on January 19, 2026, by Indonesia Last Week on TikTok.
The current system of regional elections in Indonesia involves direct public voting.
Recall elections allow voters to remove elected officials under specific conditions, such as signature thresholds, turnout requirements, or voting benchmarks.
Recall elections are expensive, based on data from their implementation in other countries.
The commentary disavows unlawful protests, such as staging demonstrations at lawmakers’ homes.
There is a perceived disconnect between what the public wants and what lawmakers are doing.
Grok, the generative AI owned by Elon Musk, has been blocked by the Indonesian and Malaysian governments after a sustained period in which the tool produced sexualized images and videos without consent, including sexualized images of children.
The majority of victims of Grok's non-consensual sexual imagery were women and children, and the perpetrators were other users on X who prompted the AI to produce the imagery.
More severe content was accessible through Grok's own website and app.
Consent, in the sexual context, means the agreement given by someone who is of legal age and is free and able to choose.
Sexual abuse is a crime and a violation of human rights.
Earlier this month, Grok responded to the controversy by limiting image generation to paid subscribers.
Exclusivity was the operating philosophy of the late Jeffrey Epstein's operations.
Jeffrey Epstein was a convicted sex offender and human trafficker.
Epstein's operations, per the transcript, seem to heavily involve the president of the United States.
The owner of Grok, Elon Musk, was photographed in public with the girlfriend of Jeffrey Epstein.
The first day of Nadi Makarim's trial featured members of the Indonesian armed forces, Tentara Nasional Indonesia (TNI), seated in the civilian courtroom.
The former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court (Mahkamah Konstitusi) publicly commented on the military presence, noting it was the first time he had seen armed forces members present in a civil trial.
The armed forces members' presence was reportedly at the behest of the Attorney General's office (Kejaksaan Agung).
Armed Forces headquarters cited a presidential decree from the previous year as the basis for the deployment.
The legal analysis on the show argued that such a presence should only be justified to protect prosecutors in objectively high-risk situations based on clear threats.
The presiding judge in the trial appeared surprised by the armed forces' presence.
Makarim left the courtroom in a manner described as being aggressively ferried away from reporters, despite his defense team having given consent for him to speak to the press.
Makarim's defense lawyers filed complaints about the manner in which he was removed from the courtroom.
Prosecutors claimed they removed Makarim from the courtroom because he was tired from surgery a few weeks earlier.
Meta announced it is acquiring Manus, a Singapore-based agentic AI startup, for a reported two billion US dollars.
Manus was originally founded in China.
Manus relocated from China to Singapore last year, in a move dubbed the Singapore Wash.
American-branded computer chips have restricted sales to China.
Relocating to Singapore gave Manus access to capital and exit opportunities not available in China.
The acquisition deal would have been next to impossible had Manus remained in China.
Many Chinese firms and business figures publicly lauded the acquisition.
Allowing the Singapore Wash pattern to continue could accelerate brain drain and capital flight from China.
The Chinese government has not commented publicly on the acquisition.
Industry observers have described Manus's agentic AI technology as exceptionally advanced, with one characterization describing it as operating at light-speed hyper-drive capability.
The deal could draw scrutiny from Beijing given the founder's Chinese nationality.
China has a reputation for what the commentary describes as non-liberal methods of lawmaking in its tech sector.
Southeast Asian tech raised a total of $6 billion in funding in 2025, per industry researcher Duke.
That figure represents a 30% fall compared to the year before (2024).
2025 was the worst year for Southeast Asian tech capital raising since 2016.
More than a quarter of the capital raised in 2025 came in the form of debt rather than equity.
Investors abandoned their old growth-at-all-costs philosophy, migrating to safer methods of financing.
The U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rates remain above pre-pandemic levels.
The U.S. Federal Reserve has indicated it may cut rates in 2026.
Southeast Asia minted five new unicorns in 2025, more than double the two minted in 2024.
The new unicorn cohort is tilted toward artificial intelligence and digitalization opportunities.
59% of Asian consumers admitted to digital piracy in 2024.
52% of Asian consumers admitted to digital piracy the year before, in 2023.
Subscription costs rose 23% between 2023 and 2024.
Subscription costs rose even higher in 2025.
Content is now spread across a number of different streaming platforms, making it more expensive for consumers to watch what they want.
Consumers are not happy with rising subscription costs.
Consumers say they are feeling fatigued by how many parts of their lives are now subscription-based.
Streaming services have been taking down piracy sites, which keep reappearing.
Israeli technology firms received nearly 12 billion US dollars in private funding in the first three quarters of 2025, up about 18 percent year on year and more than triple aid to occupied Palestinian territories.
Israeli firms raised more than 6.7 billion US dollars in funding, with the majority going to cybersecurity.
An Israeli lab-grown milk startup received 20 million US dollars in funding from the United Arab Emirates.
Israeli technology exits rose 340 percent to 59 billion US dollars, led by Google's 32 billion US dollar acquisition of cybersecurity firm Wiz.
Indonesia is receiving investments from a historically Israeli multinational for controversial geothermal projects.
Indonesia is reportedly interested in normalizing ties with Israel.
Personal devices are getting more expensive, with fingers pointed at artificial intelligence as the cause.
RAM chips are used in personal and industrial electronics.
RAM prices have doubled in lower-end models and quadrupled in others.
Industry experts warn smartphones may regress in quality through 2026, with lower-end models set to use weaker chips to maintain affordability.
AI data centers are demanding more computing power and hoarding RAM chips, squeezing consumer supplies.
The Nintendo Switch 2 could become more expensive as a result of the RAM squeeze.
Industry leaders predict RAM-driven costs will not recover before 2027 or 2028, as producers need time to adjust capacity.
Robinhood is an American financial services company set to enter the Indonesian market.
Robinhood is acquiring a local brokerage firm and a local digital assets firm as part of its Indonesian entry.
The acquisitions are intended to let Robinhood leapfrog much of the regulatory complexity of the Indonesian market.
Robinhood's core revenue engine in the United States is payment for order flow (PFOF).
Under PFOF, Robinhood routes customer trades to another brokerage for execution in exchange for a finder's fee.
The finder's fee from PFOF allows Robinhood to advertise its services as commission-free.
In Indonesia, brokers are required to execute trades themselves, which means Robinhood cannot use PFOF in the Indonesian market.
Indonesian regulators are risk-averse, particularly with respect to retail investors.
YouTube has agreed to the Australian government's request to ban anyone under 16 from holding an account.
Australian children will be signed out of their YouTube accounts starting December 10th.
The Australian policy is aimed at safeguarding children from the dangers of the internet.
Malaysia is planning its own under-16 social media ban starting next year, citing child safety concerns.
China launched its minor mode program earlier this year.
China's minor mode program is reportedly less restrictive than Australia's or Malaysia's approach and instead grants parents more direct control over their child's online experience.
Singapore has banned device use during school break times.
Indonesia considered its own version of a social media ban for children earlier this year.
One in five Malaysian children has been scammed online.
Floods and landslides across North Sumatra, West Sumatra and Aceh killed at least 604 people, with 464 still missing and more than 570,000 displaced (as of about 2 December 2025, per Indonesia's disaster agency BNPB).
The disaster injured 2,600 people, according to Indonesia's disaster agency BNPB.
The floods and landslides were triggered by Cyclone Senyar, which struck between 19 and 28 November 2025.
President Prabowo Subianto visited the disaster-affected areas in Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra on 1 December 2025.
Despite calls from local leaders, President Prabowo and the government declined to declare the flooding a national disaster/emergency.
Indonesia's government warned 25 companies to register under its electronic system operator rules, a framework that would let the government access user data, enforce takedowns, and require a local corporate presence.
The companies named on the warning list include Cloudflare, Duolingo, and the Wikimedia Foundation.
A Cloudflare outage disrupted services including ChatGPT, Spotify, and X.
The Indonesian government has claimed that 76% of online gambling websites run on Cloudflare's systems.
Cloudflare has historically been in trouble with multiple governments over allegations that it is too passive on cybercrime.
Indonesia's electronic system operator rules have been criticized for opening the door to surveillance, restricting freedom of expression, and government overreach.
The Indonesian government has been pursuing a nuclear approach to internet policy that is unlikely to change soon.
Indonesia opened its national pavilion at COP30 (the UN Climate Change Conference) in Belém, Brazil on 10 November 2025.
At COP30, Indonesia ran a 'Seller Meet Buyer' program at its pavilion where delegates from other countries could buy carbon credits based largely on Indonesia's forests.
On 15 November 2025, the Climate Action Network awarded Indonesia its 'Fossil of the Day' award for bringing fossil-fuel lobbyists into its official delegation and into Article 6.4 carbon-market negotiations, where Indonesia echoed lobbyists' talking points, sometimes verbatim.
COP30 concluded on 22 November 2025 without an agreement or roadmap to phase out fossil fuels.
Disney announced last week that it is exploring ways to integrate artificial intelligence into Disney Plus, the company's video streaming platform.
The company wants users to use its AI to create short-form content, which would then be hosted on the platform for others to consume.
Disney is planning to add games to Disney Plus, similar to what Netflix has done with its own platform.
The creator of a Disney animated series publicly told her followers to unsubscribe from Disney Plus and pirate her work.
Reports indicate that fans would effectively be able to make fanfic and post it on the platform, though the announcement does not necessarily state that AI would be required for user-generated content.
On 14 November 2025, a commission of Indonesia's DPR agreed to advance the revised Criminal Procedural Code (RUU KUHAP) to a plenary vote.
The plenary vote for RUU KUHAP was scheduled for 18 November 2025.
The announcement of the RUU KUHAP advancement was condemned by a coalition of civil society organizations.
The RUU KUHAP draft allows investigators to arrest and detain individuals before a crime is confirmed.
The RUU KUHAP draft allows investigators to arrest and detain individuals before anyone is named a suspect.
Critics describe the new investigative methods in RUU KUHAP as entrapment, or inducing individuals to commit a crime.
The RUU KUHAP draft permits phone surveillance without judicial permission.
The RUU KUHAP draft permits blocking bank accounts without judicial permission.
The RUU KUHAP draft permits seizing assets without judicial permission.
The latest version of the RUU KUHAP draft is not available on the DPR’s official website.
The DPR's plenary session passed RUU KUHAP into law on 18 November 2025 as scheduled, despite student protests and criticism from a civil-society coalition at the session itself.
The new law (Undang-Undang Nomor 20 Tahun 2025) took effect on 2 January 2026, alongside the new national criminal code (KUHP).
In February 2026, twelve petitioners — including two people who were made suspects during the May Day 2025 labor protest — filed a judicial review at the Constitutional Court challenging the new KUHAP's investigator search/seizure and 'other lawful actions' provisions as unconstitutionally vague.
On 16 March 2026 the Constitutional Court declined to rule on the merits of that petition, finding the petitioners lacked legal standing because their criminal cases had been processed under the old code before the new KUHAP's effective date.
Talks of a merger between Grab and GoTo intensified recently after the Indonesian government became involved.
Investors in GoTo reportedly want to oust the company's current chief executive.
GoTo's current chief executive reportedly opposes a potential merger with Grab.
The current GoTo chief executive joined the company in 2023.
The GoTo chief executive oversaw a roughly 40 percent decline in GoTo's market value during his tenure.
The GoTo chief executive's private equity firm was an investor in another Indonesian startup.
The startup's funds were eventually sold off for pennies on the dollar earlier in 2025.
The Indonesian government is reportedly so keen on a Grab-GoTo merger that it is being included in a future presidential decree.
The same presidential decree reportedly also outlines new rules for ride-hailing drivers.
Danantara manages a company that owns a company that owns stakes in GoTo.
Danantara would like to own stakes in a merged Grab-GoTo entity.
Danantara's potential leverage over the merged entity could make the merged company more aligned with government policy.
A majority of GoTo is reportedly not owned by Indonesia.
On 10 November 2025, Indonesia's government posthumously conferred national hero status on former president Suharto, one of ten new honorees named in a ceremony led by President Prabowo Subianto, Suharto's former son-in-law.
On Human Rights Day, 9 December 2025, KontraS issued a report tying Suharto's national hero title to a broader government-backed effort to rewrite Indonesian history, including revised national history textbooks.
In February 2026, a Boyolali farmer named Bejo, joined by 33 other residents displaced by the Suharto-era Kedung Ombo Dam project, filed a lawsuit at Jakarta's State Administrative Court (PTUN) against the presidential decree naming Suharto a national hero, citing 35 years of unpaid compensation.
A related PTUN filing argued that Suharto's national hero title causes ongoing moral and psychological harm to Kedung Ombo Dam victims and violates Indonesia's 2009 honors law, seeking cancellation of the decree and suspension of the hero status pending trial.
In April 2026, the civil-society coalition GEMAS (Gerakan Masyarakat Sipil Adili Soeharto) filed its own PTUN Jakarta lawsuit against President Prabowo over the same decree, after a December 2025 administrative objection to the State Secretariat went unanswered.
The Indonesian government announced it is exploring rules that would require influencers to be certified before discussing certain topics.
A recent Chinese policy bans influencers from discussing health, law, and finance without a relevant degree or certification.
Some argue that requiring influencers to be certified would help tackle misinformation.
A physician and former Minister of Health downplayed the COVID-19 pandemic in Indonesia.
The physician who served as Minister of Health was heavily criticized for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The physician who served as Minister of Health was replaced by an economist.
The economist who replaced the physician Minister of Health was later praised for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Some heads of government bodies in Indonesia have backgrounds completely unrelated to their job.
The current Indonesian government is widely perceived as heavy-handed, raising concerns about freedom of speech.
A few extra bills in Indonesia can reportedly turn anyone into a licensed driver.
The host of Indonesia Last Week holds a degree in transport design despite working as a journalist.
Bank Indonesia is planning to introduce a central bank digital currency (CBDC).
The proposed CBDC shares some features with Bitcoin but without the decentralization of Bitcoin, and has little to do with actual Bitcoin.
Reasons cited for adopting the CBDC include efficiency, financial inclusion, and transparency.
The CBDC would allow the government to more easily hand out money in time for the next election.
Under a CBDC, the government could have direct access to individuals' finances.
A CBDC system would be centralized and therefore vulnerable to cyber attacks.
The CBDC could affect the role of private banks.
The CBDC could affect the legitimacy of the Rupiah.
Studies have shown that adopting CBDCs has benefits.
The Whoosh high-speed rail project is under investigation for alleged corruption.
The project has been criticized for its high construction costs.
Acquiring land in Java is expensive, contributing to the project's high costs.
The head of the state-owned enterprise responsible for the Whoosh project called it a 'ticking time bomb' due to its financial health.
The project's debt was restructured, and Indonesia will repay loans to China over 50–60 years.
The Minister of Finance stated that loan repayments for the Whoosh project will not come from the state budget.
Loan repayments will instead come from state-owned enterprises (SOEs) and a sovereign wealth fund.
The transcript sarcastically notes that no examples exist where SOE debt failures have caused economic meltdowns, referencing Venezuela, Argentina, and Sri Lanka.
British newspaper The Times published a piece alleging that Chinese and Russian intelligence services are running honey trap operations against American tech workers, a practice The Times called "sex warfare."
The Times article cited industry insiders who warned of the plots but did not provide conclusive evidence that honey trapping was actually happening.
The article appeared to excite single and lonely tech workers on Reddit, who reacted to the prospect of meeting someone who had actually talked to them.
Palantir CEO Alex Karp said Chinese spying was, quote, a huge problem.
The host delivered the closing segment from the office storage room of Tech in Asia, an English-language technology media company, joking that he was not looking for documents to sell.
A sequel documentary, "Dirty Vote II O3" (Dirty Vote 2), was officially released in October 2025 as a follow-up to the 2024 election documentary Dirty Vote.
Dirty Vote 2 breaks down events from the first year of the Prabowo-Gibran presidency, released to coincide with the one-year mark of the administration.
Dirty Vote 2 is roughly four hours long and freely accessible to the public online.
Dirty Vote 2 features returning legal experts and campaigners from the original documentary, including Bivitri Susanti, alongside additional speakers such as an economist.
Roblox released a report stating it expects to contribute 8.2 million US dollars to Indonesia's GDP.
The host calculated that each creator contributes around 7,900 US dollars per year to GDP, based on the 8.2 million dollar figure.
Roblox is in trouble with the Indonesian government over concerns about violence in its games.
Roblox has said it will review age ratings for the platform.
Roblox has not been banned in Indonesia.
US online retailers have begun removing Chinese-made electronics from their storefronts following a ban by the Federal Communications Commission.
The FCC claims that products from Huawei and ZTE are used by the Chinese government to spy on American consumers.
American data firm Palantir has developed software that uses data to augment decision-making in warfare.
Palantir sells its software to countries including Israel.
Palantir's software has been used in Israel's military operations in Gaza.
Palantir's software is used to help identify targets, including hospitals, in Gaza.
Palantir reported second-quarter revenue of more than one billion dollars.
The host of the video acknowledged the irony of publishing a video critical of data harvesting on Instagram, a platform whose business model depends on user data collection.
As of October 2025, the Indonesian government wants to turn Bali into a financial hub to boost the country's lagging economy.
The proposed Bali financial hub is intended to attract international banks, asset managers, and private equity firms, offering tax and regulatory exemptions and cutting bureaucracy.
OpenAI launched a shopping feature inside ChatGPT that lets users buy products directly through conversation with stores including Etsy and Shopify.
The ChatGPT shopping feature is currently available only in the United States.
Southeast Asian e-commerce platforms Shopee and Lazada are pursuing similar AI shopping projects.
Brick-and-mortar retailers are described as being "even more sidelined than they already are" by the development of AI-powered shopping features.
AI is also being used as a therapist and, in the speaker's framing, as "boy toys."
During the speaker's research into AI partner role-play, the AI said things the speaker described as "pretty spicy."
The speaker states that none of these developments has had any impact on collective mental health.
The speaker states that "people like me will never be replaced" by AI.
TikTok's operating license in Indonesia was restored after a short suspension.
The Indonesian government suspended TikTok after the platform refused to hand over livestream data.
The livestream data in question covers broadcasts held between August 25 and August 30.
The Indonesian government has reportedly caught the hacker known as Bjorka.
Bjorka is associated with previous high-profile data leaks in Indonesia.
The Indonesian government's demand for TikTok's livestream data raised concerns about potential government misuse of personal data.
TikTok is a Chinese social media platform.
The government's Makan Bergizi Gratis (MBG) program has been linked to thousands of child food poisoning cases.
The highest estimate of food poisoning cases tied to MBG exceeds 9,000.
Some schools have been instructed to remain silent about food poisoning incidents linked to MBG.
Parts of the government have downplayed the severity of MBG-related food poisoning cases by citing lower numbers.
The government has pledged to cover all medical expenses arising from MBG-related food poisoning incidents.
The MBG program already has a high budget.
The government has promised another evaluation of the MBG program.
Indonesia Last Week published a TikTok commentary on October 2, 2025.
The host of Indonesia Last Week announced they would begin contributing to Tech in Asia.
The host described the arrangement as an act of corporate consolidation.
The host stated they would be paid to produce the same style of content for Tech in Asia.
The host suggested that foreign money from Tech in Asia would enable the creation of more content for Indonesia Last Week.
The host referred to themselves as basement-dwelling losers yapping absolute nonsense on camera.
The host encouraged viewers to follow Tech in Asia to watch them rant about tech bros and hyper experimenting the hell out of everything.
Singaporean citizens are eligible to apply for a specific H-1B1 version of the United States work visa, distinct from the standard H-1B category.
The H-1B1 visa permits Singaporean workers to take employment in the United States for one-year terms.
The H-1B1 visa can be renewed indefinitely.
H-1B1 visa holders must prove that at some point in their future they will return to Singapore.
The host described America as offering 'overpriced healthcare, garbage public transport, and pew pew parties at schools,' and framed the typical H-1B1 beneficiary as a young Singaporean whose rich parents would not have to fork an extra cent, looking for a FinTech internship.
The host described Singapore as 'the poorest nation in Southeast Asia' and the United States as 'the smallest nation in the entire world,' in both cases sarcastically.
The host described Singapore's passport as among the world's strongest.
The host admitted that the broadcast was delivered out of pure spite and jealousy for holding only an Indonesian passport.
The Presidential Press Bureau seized the credentials of a CNN Indonesia journalist after she asked President Prabowo Subianto about the Makan Bergizi Gratis (MBG) program.
The journalist asked the question as the president returned from the UN.
The commentary noted that the president showed more support to Israel than any other president in Indonesian history during his UN visit.
The Press Council condemned the seizure of the journalist's credentials.
After days of pressure, the Presidential Press Bureau returned the journalist's credentials.
The commentary described the incident as the Press Bureau making itself look bad.
The commentary suggested the Press Bureau's actions were better than looking authoritarian.
The commentary implied the Press Bureau could learn from the president about avoiding authoritarian appearances.
On 21 September 2025, Canada, Australia, and Portugal joined the United Kingdom in formally recognising the State of Palestine.
On 22 September 2025, France formally recognised the State of Palestine at a UN summit, joined by Andorra, Belgium, Luxembourg, Malta, and Monaco.
On 12 September 2025, the UN General Assembly endorsed the New York Declaration on the two-state solution, with 142 countries in favour and 10 voting against, including Israel and the United States.
Over 800 students suffered food poisoning after consuming meals from the government’s Makan Bergizi Gratis (MBG) program in the week of 22 September 2025.
The total number of students poisoned by the MBG program since its launch in January 2025 exceeds 4,000.
The MBG program provides free nutritious meals to students.
Meals from the MBG program were reported to contain contaminants such as E. coli and salmonella.
The government issued a rare apology in response to the food poisoning incidents linked to the MBG program.
The commentary suggested the issue stemmed from the younger generation’s sense of entitlement rather than program failures.
The commentary contrasted past non-nutritious school meals like spaghetti bolognaise and chicken steak with the MBG program’s offerings.
The MBG program is free, as stated in its name.
Reports indicate the MBG program’s resources are managed efficiently.
Independent monitoring by JPPI tallied 33,626 MBG poisoning victims nationwide across 31 provinces from the program's 2025 start through 7 April 2026.
On 28-29 January 2026, about 600 of SMAN 2 Kudus's 1,178 students fell ill after eating MBG-supplied chicken soto, with 118 hospitalized; BGN lab testing attributed the outbreak to E. coli contamination, and the supplying kitchen was suspended.
72 students across four schools in Pondok Kelapa, East Jakarta, fell ill after eating MBG spaghetti on 4-5 April 2026, with roughly 50 still under treatment as BGN inspected the supplying kitchen.
On 3 June 2026, the Attorney General's Office named former BGN chief Dadan Hindayana and two former deputy chiefs, Sony Sonjaya and Lodewyk Pusung, as corruption suspects and detained them, alleging budget markups and procurement steered to affiliated foundations covering the MBG program's Rp85.2 trillion (2025) and Rp268 trillion (2026) budgets.
The Indonesian government restricted access to subsidized fuel, requiring QR codes, registration, or other bureaucratic steps to obtain it.
The policy aimed to ensure subsidized fuel reaches intended beneficiaries, not luxury vehicle owners like Toyota Alphard or Fortuner owners.
The cost of subsidizing fuel amounts to a significant financial burden for the government.
Consumers shifted to private fuel stations like Shell or BP after the subsidized fuel restrictions were implemented.
Private fuel stations like Shell or BP import their fuel through Pertamina.
The government allowed private companies to import 10% more fuel than they did the previous year to address increased demand.
The 10% import increase was insufficient to meet consumer demand for fuel.
The government suggested that private companies buy fuel directly from Pertamina to sell at their own stations.
The government pledged to import additional fuel from the United States to address fuel shortages.
The commentary highlighting these issues was published by Indonesia Last Week on September 18, 2025.
The General Elections Commission (KPU) initially announced that presidential candidates would no longer need to publicize background documents, including retirement reports from the police and military, as well as graduate diplomas.
The KPU reversed its decision a day later following widespread criticism, restoring the requirement for candidates to publicize background documents.
The KPU’s reversal means the public will still have access to retirement reports from the police and military, as well as graduate diplomas of presidential candidates.
The KPU’s rapid reversal followed widespread public criticism of its initial decision.
Indonesia Last Week reported on the KPU’s initial decision and subsequent reversal in a TikTok commentary published on September 16, 2025.
Moviegoers complained online when videos of the president's achievements were played before films in cinemas.
The videos of the president's achievements began appearing in cinemas on September 9, 2025.
Some cinemas indicated the videos would be shown for about one week.
The government defended the videos, stating they are common as long as they do not disrupt comfort or beauty.
The government's defense included the condition that the videos must not disrupt comfort or aesthetics.
Historical examples of similar pre-film government propaganda include New Order Indonesia, the Soviet Union, North Korea, Mao's China, and 1930s Germany.
The pre-film government propaganda examples cited are regimes with records often criticized for human rights and personal liberties.
The Ministry of Defense filed a complaint with the Press Council against Tempo, alleging the outlet lied in a report about the Defense Minister calling for martial law.
The Press Council investigation requires Tempo to submit documents and recordings used in its report.
If no violations are found by the Press Council, the case against Tempo will be dropped.
Tempo has a reputation for high editorial standards and holding truth to power.
The Ministry of Defense’s complaint centers on Tempo’s allegation that the Defense Minister urged the President to impose martial law.
The strategy of using legal means to delegitimize opponents is referred to as lawfare or a SLAPP suit.
The complaint was discussed in an Indonesia Last Week TikTok commentary published on September 12, 2025.
The Indonesian National Police (Polri) rejected a request from the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) to press defamation charges against an activist.
The rejection by Polri cited Constitutional Court Decision Number 105/PUU-XXII/2024.
Constitutional Court Decision Number 105/PUU-XXII/2024 states that defamation can only be reported as a criminal offense by an individual, not an institution.
The commentary was published on September 10, 2025, by Indonesia Last Week on TikTok.
The commentary noted that institutions retain alternative legal avenues, such as civil litigation, to address defamation claims.
Members of the DPR met with students on 3 September to hear demands from recent protests.
The DPR announced it would hold a meeting with all party leaders on 4 September to discuss the people's demands.
The meeting was scheduled one day before the deadline for 17 demands from a highly popular campaign.
Indonesia Last Week published a TikTok commentary on 9 September 2025 discussing the DPR's actions.
An investigation by Tempo alleges that members of the Indonesian military (TNI) infiltrated WhatsApp groups during recent protests to incite violence and vandalism.
The allegations also claim that the Defense Minister attempted to convince President Prabowo Subianto to enact martial law.
The claims were published in a Tempo investigation.
The allegations were commented on by Indonesia Last Week in a satirical TikTok video on September 9, 2025.
Both the TNI and the Ministry of Defense (Kemhan) have denied these allegations.
The denials were supported by their stated 'strong history of conduct during times of crises.'
In early September 2025, Indonesia's Minister of Religious Affairs, Nasaruddin Umar, said that people who want to earn money should not become teachers but should become traders instead.
After the remark went viral, Minister Nasaruddin Umar apologized, saying he had no intention of demeaning the teaching profession.
The president appointed an economist as the new finance minister.
The appointment of the new finance minister was announced in a September 9, 2025 TikTok commentary by Indonesia Last Week.
Analysts fear the new finance minister may be more willing to accommodate the president’s spending preferences than his predecessor.
The new finance minister described himself as a 'market guy' to calm market concerns.
There are concerns that government overspending could devalue the currency, assuming the central bank remains fully independent.
The day after being sworn in, Purbaya announced he would inject Rp200 trillion (~$12.15 billion) of idle government cash into commercial banks and pledged the 2026 budget deficit would stay below 3% of GDP.
Purbaya fired two Finance Ministry director-generals, reportedly over a budget breach involving procurement of electric motorcycles for the free-nutritious-meal program that he says he'd rejected but which was funded anyway.
The rupiah breached the psychological Rp18,000-per-dollar level in June 2026 for the first time; Purbaya denied the depreciation was caused by fiscal conditions or government spending, blaming market rumors instead.
Amid the rupiah crisis, rumors spread that President Prabowo would remove Purbaya as finance minister following a closed-door meeting; both Purbaya and the State Secretary publicly denied any resignation or reshuffle plan.
On 8 September 2025, President Prabowo Subianto carried out a second reshuffle of his Merah Putih (Red and White) Cabinet, replacing several ministers.
As part of the reshuffle, a new Ministry of Hajj and Umrah was formed, with Mochamad Irfan Yusuf appointed as its minister.
State Secretariat Minister Prasetyo Hadi said the reshuffle decision was based on various considerations, inputs, and evaluations continuously carried out by the President.
One of the ministers removed in the reshuffle, P2MI Minister Abdul Kadir Karding, had recently gone viral in a photo playing dominoes late at night with Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni and an alleged illegal logger, Azis Wellang.
Indonesia Last Week introduced its new approach to news delivery as 'fairly inaccurately' in a September 8, 2025 TikTok commentary.
The creator is a former news anchor delivering the commentary from a high-tech studio described as their apartment dining table.
The creator stated the real headlines were not depressing enough, justifying their satirical approach.
The creator described the project as 'the love child of journalism and questionable decisions'.
The creator pledged to continue wearing their anchor suit because 'satire deserves respect'.
The creator promised to maintain 'unjournalistic integrity' and to 'be biased'.
Indonesia Last Week aims to bring 'all the headlines you didn’t know you needed'.
Members of the DPR met with student demonstrators on 3 September 2025 to receive demands from the recent protests.
DPR members announced a meeting of all party leaders for 4 September 2025 to discuss the demands.
The party-leader meeting is scheduled one day before the deadline of 17 demands issued by a highly popular campaign.