Microsoft's CEO, Satya Nadella, announced on Tuesday that the company will invest $1.7 billion over the next four years in developing data centers and expanding cloud services and artificial intelligence in Indonesia.

Nadella is beginning a tour of Southeast Asian nations to promote the generative AI technology of the American company, and his first stop is Jakarta. Later this week, he will travel to Thailand and Malaysia.

According to Nadella, Microsoft's investment would provide Indonesia with the newest and best AI infrastructure. He went on to say that they would set the standard for the necessary AI infrastructure. According to Communications Minister Budi Arie Setiadi, Nadella met with outgoing President Joko Widodo and his cabinet ministers earlier on Tuesday to talk about collaborative AI research and talent development. The minister stated that Widodo recommended Microsoft locate its data centers on the vacation island of Bali or in the upcoming capital city of Nusantara, which is now under development in the Borneo jungle.

Nadella said Microsoft will train 2.5 million people in Southeast Asia in AI by 2025, with 840,000 in Indonesia. Microsoft invested $2.9 billion in cloud and AI infrastructure in Japan and $1.5 billion in a UAE-based AI company called G42 to boost its global AI development support. Two weeks ago, Apple Inc.'s CEO Tim Cook met with Widodo and said he will consider building a manufacturing plant in Indonesia. Nadella is now visiting Jakarta.

Indonesia's large and tech-savvy population makes it a key market for IT investments in Southeast Asia. Last week, Microsoft's third-quarter revenue and earnings surpassed Wall Street's expectations, mainly because of the benefits from integrating artificial intelligence into its cloud services.