ByteDance’s launch of Doubao-Seed-Code, an AI coding agent priced at only Rp20,000 per month, may appear at first glance as just another product release from a tech giant famous for TikTok. But beneath the surface, it represents something far more consequential: the opening salvo of a global price war in AI developer tools, one that could reshape how software is built, who controls digital ecosystems, and how geopolitical influence is projected through technology.

Few months ago, a group claimed itself KOMANDAN (Nusantara Student Corps) in Southeast Sulawesi, urged the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to investigate PT Tiran Mineral’s nickel operation in the province. They accused PT Tiran of causing Rp4.9 trillion losses to the State.

Haji Abdul Rasyid AS, owner of Citra Borneo Indah (CBI) Group, might be not as popular as Haji Isam (owner of Jhonlin Group), but he is clearly one of the richest Hajj in the country. His Sawit Sumbermas (SSMS) is worth Rp15.6 trillion, way below ‘market value’ of Haji Isam’s Pradiksi Gunatama/PGUN (Rp72 trillion), but definitely more profitable.

Shares of Sekar Bumi (SKBM), a seafood exporter, dropped 4.2% to Rp484 today (Nov 11) to make a market capitalization of Rp838 billion, way below equity (Rp1.04 trillion by Sep 30, 2025) despite impressive performance in the first nine months of the year.

Shares of Sido Muncul (SIDO) ended lower by 1.74% to Rp565 last Friday (Nov 7) to make a market capitalization of Rp17 trillion. The stock collapsed 45% from its peak in March 2022 as the controlling family expanded more outside the herbal industry.

In a market once dominated by imported sneakers and international logos, Ventela stands as a quiet rebellion from Bandung’s industrial heartland. Founded by William Ventela in 2017 after decades operating a vulcanized-shoe factory, the brand represents a generational pivot—from contract manufacturing for others to creating an Indonesian identity in footwear.

Harry NP Danardojo, founder and chairman of Asco Prima Surya, a renewable energy company, passed away on Sunday (Oct 26). Sadly, his car was hit by a fallen big palm tree in the upscale neighbourhood Pondok Indah, South Jakarta, around one mile from home. 

More transformative story may be happening quietly in the back alleys of traditional markets, where small traders are learning to replace notebooks with apps. One of the startups driving this shift is CrediBook, a home-grown bookkeeping platform built to help wholesalers and small retailers manage their daily finances with just a smartphone.

When Salesforce launched Hyperforce in Indonesia, it sounded like yet another cloud expansion headline. But behind that lies a deeper transformation—one that redefines how global software giants align technology architecture with the political geography of data.

Amidst global giants such as SAP SuccessFactors, Oracle HCM, Odoo, and Workday, LinovHR — a homegrown product developed by PT Lawencon Internasional — has quietly emerged as a local contender in the Human Resource Information System (HRIS) landscape.