SK Innovation E&S to Nurture Young Entrepreneurs in Indonesia's AI and Energy Sectors

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13 Nov, 2026, 07:11 CST

- 'MAJU:ON Hackathon', a startup idea competition for Indonesian youth, held in Jakarta on November 11-12

- Seeking innovative business ideas in areas including AI agent development and energy efficiency

- Six outstanding teams to receive continued support, from startup training to investor connections

JAKARTA, Indonesia, Nov. 13, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- SK Innovation E&S is continuing its program for a second year to identify promising business ideas in artificial intelligence transformation (AX) and energy, while helping young Indonesians build entrepreneurial skills.

SK Innovation E&S announced that it hosted the 'MAJU:ON Hackathon', a startup idea competition for Indonesian university students, on November 11–12 at Le Meridien Jakarta.

Key officials and participants pose for a commemorative photo at the MAJU:ON Hackathon, an entrepreneurship idea competition for Indonesian university students, held at Le Méridien Jakarta in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the 12th. (Front row, center table: second from left, Mr. Dongkun Shon, Head of SK innovation E&S Indonesia; third from left, Mr. Umar Ali Lessy, Special Advisor to the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources of Indonesia)

The six winning teams, including team ‘Orbitani’ (front row, right), winner of the AX category, and team ‘Little Mermaids’ (front row, left), winner of the Energy category, pose for a commemorative photo at the MAJU:ON Hackathon held at Le Méridien Jakarta in Jakarta, Indonesia, on the 12th

'MAJU:ON' is a program launched last year by SK Innovation E&S in partnership with UD Impact, a South Korean ESG solutions company, to support young entrepreneurs in Indonesia.

In the program's inaugural year, 220 teams applied. After a 10-month journey, three outstanding teams were selected. Last September, the teams visited Korea, where they had the opportunity to network with energy and environmental experts and explore the startup ecosystem in Busan. Ali Andika Wardhana, Deputy Chief of Mission at the Embassy of the Republic of Indonesia in Seoul, also met with the teams in Busan to offer his encouragement.

The hackathon marked the first event of MAJU:ON's second year, with the program expanding in scope and scale. While last year's program focused solely on energy and the environment, this year's program has broadened its scope to include AI. Around 300 teams applied, reflecting greater interest than in the program's inaugural year.

Thirty Indonesian university student teams took part in the hackathon. Their business ideas spanned AX—including AI agent development and AI-powered workflow automation—as well as energy solutions such as energy efficiency and distributed energy.

On the first day, participants took part in training sessions on refining business ideas, analyzing customers, developing global investor relations (IR) decks, and strengthening their presentation skills. Team presentations and judging took place on the second day. The judging panel evaluated each team's business feasibility, capabilities and other criteria before selecting the leading teams in each category.

A total of six outstanding teams were selected, with first-, second-, and third-place teams chosen in both the AX and energy categories. The top awards in the respective categories went to team 'Orbitani', whose platform uses AI to analyze satellite data and recommend the best crops for local conditions and soil characteristics, and team 'Little Mermaids', whose system monitors water temperature, salinity and oxygen levels at different depths to automatically identify optimal locations for shellfish farms.

Over the next year, the six selected teams will receive support throughout the startup journey. This will include training in entrepreneurship, business management and AI; networking opportunities with key Indonesian government officials and energy experts; and opportunities to connect with venture capital (VC) investors.

"This event is a starting point for discovering young people's ideas on AI transformation and energy challenges—issues that are drawing attention around the world—and helping them develop those ideas into viable businesses," said Choi Eun-jung, head of the Sustainability Management Team at SK Innovation E&S. "We will continue working to strengthen Indonesia's youth startup ecosystem and expand cooperation between Korea and Indonesia."

SOURCE SK Innovation E&S