Google executives testify the case against Nadiem doesn't add up

The corruption trial of Nadiem Makarim, Indonesia's former education minister and co-founder of the ride-hailing giant Gojek, took a notable turn on 20 April 2026 when former Google executives testified in his defence. As the Associated Press reports, three ex-Google leaders, appearing by video link at the Jakarta corruption court, said the company's roughly US$787 million investment in the Indonesian firm GoTo had nothing to do with a government decision to buy Google Chromebook laptops for schools.

That decision is the heart of the case. As minister, Nadiem oversaw the purchase of more than 1.2 million Chromebooks for online learning during the pandemic. Prosecutors allege the deal caused about 2.18 trillion rupiah (US$124.5 million) in losses to the state and that Nadiem personally received 809 billion rupiah. But one former executive, Scott Beaumont, told the court plainly: "There was no connection at all between Google's investment in GoTo and any of the conversations with the Ministry of Education." The testimony directly contradicted a central claim of the prosecution.

The case is Indonesia's most closely watched corruption trial of the year, testing how the courts treat a prominent tech founder with no political party to protect him. Nadiem, a 41-year-old Harvard graduate arrested in 2025, would later be convicted and sentenced to 10 years in prison.

Why it matters

This case shapes how investors and entrepreneurs read the risk of doing business in Indonesia, because it turns on whether a normal policy choice can later be treated as a crime. Testimony poking holes in the state's case matters to anyone worried about how evidence is weighed in high-profile trials. Watch how the court handles expert testimony, and whether appeals follow the verdict.