American Innovation Hub: AI & Digital Skills for the Creative & Tech Economy

Indonesia is ASEAN’s largest economy and most populous nation, with a young, fast-growing digital population that is rapidly adopting artificial intelligence and creative-technology tools. The choices this generation makes about which technologies, standards, and platforms to build on will shape Indonesia’s digital economy for decades. Demand for trusted, high-quality AI tools is outpacing access to credible, hands-on training, and U.S. technology providers remain underrepresented in the venues where Indonesian youth, creators, and MSMEs first encounter AI. This program builds demand for full-stack U.S. artificial-intelligence technologies and standards and supports the continued growth of Indonesia’s creative and technology economy. The U.S. Mission to Indonesia’s American Spaces network reaches these audiences directly. The Mission has focused its network on five higher-impact American Corners — American Corner Malang, American Corner Makassar, American Corner Yogyakarta, American Corner Pontianak, and American Corner Ambon. These corners put U.S. programming in front of technology adopters, content creators, MSME operators, future policymakers, and youth influencers. Past American Spaces programming has shown that one-off events generate limited, short-lived engagement, while sustained, skills-based programming tied to tangible participant outputs builds durable relationships and measurable behavioral change. This opportunity builds on those lessons by funding a coherent, network-wide program rather than isolated activities, and by recruiting and professionalizing the teams that operate the corners so that gains are sustained beyond the award period. Through this NOFO, the Public Diplomacy Section seeks a partner to operationalize the American Innovation Hubs program. Success will be defined by five corners visibly transformed into modern innovation spaces; a documented shift in participant preference toward American AI tools and standards; a steady cadence of locally produced digital content; and a trained, capable cadre of corner staff able to sustain the model. Project Audience(s): The program serves several distinct audiences across the five host cities of Pontianak (West Kalimantan), Malang (East Java), Yogyakarta (Central Java), Ambon (Maluku), and Makassar (South Sulawesi): • Indonesian youth and young adults aged 18–35 — technology adopters, content creators, digital entrepreneurs, and startup founders; • MSME owners and operators in the creative and technology sectors seeking to adopt AI tools for content creation and online marketing; • American Corner staff and host-institution counterparts who operate the five corners. Project Goal: Advance U.S. innovation leadership and build sustained Indonesian demand for the American AI technology stack by transforming five American Corners into American Innovation Hubs that equip Indonesia’s youth, creatives, and MSMEs with full-stack American AI and digital skills. Project Objectives: • Objective 1: Reposition and equip all five American Corners as American Innovation Hubs with professional U.S. AI hardware, licensed American AI software, and a unified visual identity, with all five corners meeting applicable American Spaces Standards by the end of the program. • Objective 2: Recruit, hire, and professionalize the local staff who operate the three corners in Malang, Yogyakarta, and Makassar, and build the capacity of at least 25 American Corner staff across five competency tracks — creative-hub operations; strategic programming; ecosystem integration; brand stewardship; and monitoring, evaluation, and reporting — with each corner producing an Annual Programming Plan and a Partner Ecosystem Map of at least 20 active local relationships. • Objective 3: Train at least 1,500 youth, creative professionals, and MSMEs (approximately 300 per corner) in full-stack American AI tools and standards, resulting in a documented increase of at least 25 percent in participant preference fo

Eligible ApplicantsThe following organizations are eligible to apply:● Not-for-profit organizations, including think tanks and civil society/non-governmental organizations● Public and private educational institutions● IndividualsFor-profit entities, even those that may fall into the categories listed above, are not eligible to apply for this NOFO.