Indian embassy in Jakarta rolls out AI avatar Dewi

The embassy of India in Jakarta has launched an artificial intelligence avatar called Dewi to handle public outreach on Indian culture, travel, education, business and investment opportunities and consular services. 

The embassy said Dewi was launched on October 13 and would appear across its social-media platforms to make information about India and the India-Indonesia relationship more accessible to Indonesian audiences.

“Meet Dewi, the new AI face of the Embassy of India in Jakarta,” the mission said in its social media announcement.

Indian Ambassador to Indonesia Sandeep Chakravorty said Dewi had been introduced during Navaratri and Durga Puja and would “guide her followers” through the embassy’s digital channels.

The name was chosen with the Indonesian audience in mind. Dewi is a common female name in Indonesia and means goddess.

The embassy said it derives from the Sanskrit word “Devi,” reflecting the shared linguistic and cultural links between India and Indonesia that developed over centuries. 

The avatar is expected to communicate in English and Bahasa Indonesia, giving the mission a locally recognizable digital identity while widening access to information ranging from scholarships and tourism to business opportunities and embassy services.

The embassy described the initiative as part of a shift beyond conventional diplomatic communication.

Through Dewi, it intends to make information about India “more accessible, engaging and relevant to Indonesia,” according to its statement.

The embassy has not, however, disclosed important technical details about the system.

It has not said which AI model powers Dewi, whether the avatar can answer individual questions in real time, what data sources it uses or whether it can directly process consular requests.

The announcement so far presents Dewi primarily as a digital outreach and information tool rather than a replacement for conventional embassy services.

Routine visa, passport and consular services continue to be handled through the embassy’s existing channels and designated officers in Jakarta.

The project also fits into a broader Indian government push to use AI in public services.

The embassy said the launch was guided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s M.A.N.A.V. framework for artificial intelligence, unveiled at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi in February.

M.A.N.A.V. stands for Moral and Ethical Systems, Accountable Governance, National Sovereignty, Accessible and Inclusive, and Valid and Legitimate.

Modi has argued that AI should be used to make government and public services more efficient while remaining accountable and human-centered. At the February summit, he said AI should become “a tool for inclusion and empowerment,” particularly for the Global South.

Jakarta gives India a relatively large audience for such an experiment.

Indonesia is home to about 130,000 Persons of Indian Origin and roughly 15,000 Non-Resident Indians, including professionals working in fields such as engineering, education and accounting.

India and Indonesia have also been expanding political, security, commercial and cultural ties, giving the embassy a wider Indonesian audience beyond the expatriate community.