AI Pushes Indonesia to Overhaul Digital Media as Jobs and Truth Face Threat

The Ministry of Creative Economy said the push is part of the national creative economy strategy and aims to build a more resilient digital media sector, though it did not specify new policies or funding figures in the draft [1]. The move comes as AI tools can now generate text, images, and video at low cost, fueling concerns about competition for media outlets, job losses, and the spread of low-quality or false content [1].

The stakes extend well beyond Indonesia's borders. In Japan, the government has formally asked OpenAI and Anthropic to give it greater access to their advanced AI models, seeking deeper visibility into how the systems work rather than just the polished products the companies sell [2]. The request targets the inner workings of frontier models — the most powerful AI systems available — amid growing government worry that these tools can be misused and that regulators cannot assess risks they cannot see [2]. Several countries are pushing AI developers to share more technical detail with authorities, and the outcome could set a precedent for how much control governments gain over private AI systems [2].

Concerns are also mounting over how AI shapes public understanding. A new study from Kosovo warns that AI chatbots, increasingly used as everyday sources of information, may present and even distort geopolitical narratives, raising questions about how accurately they describe world events and disputed regions [3].

The technology is spreading fast through education as well. Hong Kong will introduce a new subject called information and innovation technology (IIT) in primary schools starting September 2028, with artificial intelligence as one of its main highlights; students as young as seven will learn to hold simple "conversations" with an AI system using basic prompts [4]. The Education Bureau said the goal is to prepare students for a technology-driven world [4].

Even old industries are being redrawn by the AI boom. Fujifilm will increase production of magnetic tape on a scale not seen in two decades, because AI has created new demand for the storage technology: data centers need a cheap, reliable way to save massive amounts of information, and tape costs less than hard drives and uses less energy [5]. The company did not say exactly how much it will invest or when the new capacity will be ready, but the move marks a major shift for a product long seen as outdated [5].

In Thailand, Kasikornbank (KBank), the country's second-largest bank by assets, plans to use AI to expand its wealth management customer base by automating personalized advice that was previously available only to the wealthy [6]. The bank will deploy AI tools to analyze customer data and recommend investment products suited to each person's income, goals, and risk tolerance, aiming to serve mass-market customers at a lower cost than traditional relationship managers [6].