What happened
The Kura Kura Bali special economic zone on Serangan island in Denpasar is being developed as a hub for artificial intelligence, digital R&D, semiconductors and quantum technology. A senior government official set out the plan on 4 October 2026 at a 2026 forum on cooperation between universities and industry in China and Southeast Asia, hosted in the zone.
The forum brought together participants from Indonesia, China and Southeast Asia to discuss universities, industry, innovation, energy and regional connectivity.
What the government said
The speaker was Ali Murtopo Simbolon, deputy for trade and digital economy at the Coordinating Ministry for Economic Affairs and acting secretary general of the National SEZ Council. He represented the coordinating minister.
He described Kura Kura Bali as a strategic place for Indonesia and China to work together on technology and industry. With global competition and uncertainty rising, he said, Indonesia can offer a safe environment for academic and industrial partnerships. He added that the Tsinghua Southeast Asia Center (TSEA) could act as a bridge linking China, Southeast Asia and the wider world.
The zone in numbers
A KEK, or Kawasan Ekonomi Khusus, is a special economic zone that offers investors tax and licensing incentives. By the end of the first half of 2026, Kura Kura Bali had attracted Rp 1.8 trillion in cumulative investment. It employs 2,173 people and logged 131,657 visits.
TSEA, based in the zone, has run programs in physics and neuroscience and started a semiconductors forum together with Tsinghua University. Next, the zone is being prepared for work in AI, digital research and the digital economy.
Chinese capital in Indonesia's SEZs
Nationwide, Indonesia operates 25 special economic zones covering about 23,797.88 hectares. They have drawn roughly US$ 20.7 billion in cumulative investment, host 481 companies and account for more than 283,000 jobs.
In the second quarter of 2026, 97 of those 481 tenants, or about 20%, came from China. The government says it wants cooperation to bring technology, research and skills, not only capital. One tool is the Two Countries Twin Parks scheme, which pairs Indonesian resources, market and location with Chinese investment and industrial capacity.
Who attended
Guests included National Economic Council chairman Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan. The Chinese side included Tsinghua University leadership, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Chinese consul general in Denpasar. Officials from the Guizhou provincial education department and the China-ASEAN Education Cooperation Week secretariat also took part.
Why it matters for Bali
Bali's economy has long leaned on tourism. Kura Kura Bali is presented as a different track built on education, research and technology. The government says the zone not only attracts investment but also opens economic opportunities and jobs on the island.
The AI, digital research and digital economy programs are described as the next stage. The source gives no timeline, budget or names of specific projects or new tenants.