Tech billionaire Elon Musk (L) speaks during a ceremony held to inaugurate satellite unit Starlink at a community health center in Denpasar on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali on May 19, 2024. Millions of people in Indonesia, a vast archipelago of more than 17,000 islands, are not currently hooked up to reliable internet services. (Photo by SONNY TUMBELAKA/AFP via Getty Images)
Elon Musk traveled to Bali this weekend to officially launch Starlink, the SpaceX satellite internet service, in Indonesia this Sunday.
At a launch event with ministers in a health clinic in Indonesia, Musk stressed the significance of providing internet access to far-reaching corners of the vast archipelago, comprising 17,000 islands across three time zones.
“We are focusing this event on Starlink and the benefits that I found with productivity could bring to remote islands and to remote communities,” Musk said. “I think it’s really important to emphasize the importance of internet connectivity and how much of a life-changer that can be and a lifesaver that can be.”
Starlink has satellites that remain in low orbit, allowing them to deliver faster internet service to more places than some of the local internet providers.
Communication and Informatics Minister Budi Arie Setiadi said local providers, which rely on base transceiver stations to transmit signals, are unable to reach outer islands because they have limited coverage, The Associated Press reported.
At the launch event, Musk conducted a speed test of the internet service with several health workers in remote areas of the archipelago.
“This can make it really a lifesaver for remote medical clinics, and I think it could be a possibility for education as well,” Musk told reporters, the AP reported.
Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin said of the more than 10,000 clinics across the country, there are still around 2,700 without internet access, the AP said.
Musk will meet with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on Monday, while Musk participates in the World Water Forum conference.
The Associated Press contributed.
