Indonesia Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) Innovation Matching Grant

BRIN Innovation Matching Grant

The National Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) provides matching grants for collaborative R&D projects between Indonesian companies and research institutions. These grants fund applied research projects that address national priority areas, with AI-focused proposals receiving priority consideration under Indonesia's National AI Strategy (Stranas KA).

Grant Structure

• Matching ratio: Typically 50:50 (BRIN matches company investment dollar-for-dollar)
• Grant size: IDR 500 million to IDR 5 billion per project (approximately USD 31,000 to USD 315,000)
• Duration: 1-3 years per project
• Funding type: Non-dilutive (no equity or revenue share required)

Priority AI Research Areas

BRIN prioritizes funding for AI projects aligned with national development goals:

Healthcare AI

• Disease prediction and early warning systems for tropical diseases
• Medical imaging analysis for tuberculosis, dengue, and malaria screening
• AI-powered telemedicine for remote island communities
• Drug discovery for endemic disease treatments

Agricultural AI

• Crop yield prediction for rice, palm oil, rubber, and coffee
• Pest and disease detection using drone imagery and computer vision
• Supply chain optimization for smallholder farmers
• Climate-adaptive agriculture planning

Financial Inclusion

• Alternative credit scoring for unbanked populations (using mobile and e-commerce data)
• Fraud detection for digital payment systems
• AI-powered microfinance risk assessment
• Financial literacy chatbots in Bahasa Indonesia and regional languages

Smart Cities

• Traffic management and optimization for Jakarta, Surabaya, and Bandung
• Flood prediction and disaster response systems
• Air quality monitoring and prediction
• Urban planning optimization

Natural Language Processing

• Bahasa Indonesia NLP models and datasets
• Multi-language support for 700+ regional languages
• Document intelligence for government services
• Sentiment analysis for Indonesian social media

Eligibility Requirements

1. Indonesian company: Must be a registered Indonesian business entity (PT)
2. Research partner: Must collaborate with a BRIN-affiliated research institution or Indonesian university
3. Innovation focus: Project must create new knowledge, products, or processes (not routine development)
4. Matching commitment: Company must commit to matching BRIN's grant with its own investment
5. Commercialization plan: Must demonstrate a path to commercial application within 2-3 years

Application Process

1. Identify research partner: Connect with a BRIN research centre or university department aligned with your AI focus area
2. Develop joint proposal: Co-author a research proposal with your academic partner covering methodology, timeline, budget, and expected outcomes
3. Submit to BRIN: Applications are accepted during annual call-for-proposals windows (typically Q1 each year)
4. Peer review: BRIN's evaluation panel assesses proposals on scientific merit, feasibility, and national impact
5. Grant agreement: Successful applicants sign a grant agreement specifying milestones and reporting requirements
6. Implementation: Execute the project with quarterly progress reports to BRIN
7. Final evaluation: BRIN conducts a final assessment of project outcomes and commercialization readiness

Tips for Successful Applications

• Align your proposal explicitly with Indonesia's National AI Strategy priorities
• Demonstrate clear commercial application (BRIN values translational research over pure theory)
• Include Indonesian talent development as a project component
• Budget for technology transfer and knowledge sharing activities
• Propose measurable impact metrics relevant to Indonesian development goals