In a world where small and medium enterprises (SMEs) drive over 90% of global employment yet remain under-digitised, Yose Rizal envisions a future where AI is not a luxury, but an accessible, everyday assistant. After pioneering Indonesia’s first social listening platform MediaWave and the election forecasting tool PoliticaWave, Yose turned his focus to democratizing AI through MWX, the world’s first decentralised agentic AI marketplace designed specifically for SMEs.

In this interview, Yose discusses how MWX blends trust, transparency, and decentralization to help businesses automate decisions, scale efficiently, and retain ownership of their data. From lessons learned at Telkomsel to strategies for reaching 400 million SMEs, he shares what it takes to make AI truly work for the real economy.

1. When you began MWX, what specific lessons about data reliability, context modelling, and public trust shaped how MWX agents operate today?

MWX agents are built on verifiable data pipelines, contextual reasoning, and transparent audit layers to ensure reliability, transparency, and user trust.

2. MWX calls itself an “agentic AI marketplace.” For a small business owner with no technical background, what does an MWX agent actually do day-to-day?

MWX agents act as AI assistants automating routine business tasks from marketing strategy development, social media content creation, digital advertising, financial reporting, inventory management, and legal support for operations, helping SMEs save time and make data-driven decisions, without needing tech expertise.

3. MWX uses decentralised rails rather than a purely centralised SaaS model. Where do token incentives or shared governance meaningfully improve trust, cost, or distribution for SMEs, and where do they not?

MWX employs a token-based incentive system to ensure that every contributor — including AI providers, agent developers, and SMEs — receives a fair and transparent share of value. To maintain cost efficiency, MWX balances processes between blockchain (on-chain) and traditional systems (off-chain).

4. SMEs care about predictable costs and low onboarding friction. Which commercial model has proven most viable so far?

Usage-based token (credit) access with predictable pricing and no-code onboarding has proven most effective for SME adoption and scalability.

5. You’ve led transformation at Telkomsel and INDICO. What makes telcos, payment networks, or regional platforms strategic distribution partners for MWX, beyond just reach?

Companies such as telcos and payment networks have millions of verified users and robust data infrastructures. By partnering with them, MWX can reach MSMEs faster, leverage existing data to train its agents, and expand adoption without having to build a network from scratch.

6. MWX will operate across markets with different data privacy and localisation rules. How do you design agent data flows so SMEs maintain ownership, while still allowing agents to learn and improve?

MWX ensures that MSME data remains stored and controlled by its owners in accordance with each country’s regulations. MWX employs a system that enables agents to learn from user data patterns without copying or transferring the data, enabling continuous intelligence improvement while preserving privacy and data ownership.

7. SMEs often have fragmented or low-quality data. What engineering strategies have worked best to make agents useful without expensive data cleanup e.g., templates, weak supervision, data adapters, or human-in-the-loop flows?

MWX understands that many MSMEs have disorganized or incomplete data. Therefore, we leverage structured templates, adaptive data adapters, and optional human-in-loop validation to ensure agent accuracy even with imperfect data.

8. To justify adoption, SMEs need to see clear outcomes. What short-term KPIs do you track (e.g., time saved, lead conversion, revenue lift)? And what longer-term impact signals matter most to you?

We measure the success of our AI agents based on tangible results for MSMEs — such as improved efficiency, higher sales conversion, and reduced operational costs. In the long run, the key indicator is the sustainable growth of MSME productivity.

9. MWX aims to serve ~400 million SMEs, which is an enormous mission. What scaling levers will unlock that growth?

MWX can scale rapidly thanks to its modular agent system (easily expandable and customizable), decentralized distribution (not reliant on a single hub), and partnerships across multiple sectors. This approach allows MWX to reduce costs while accelerating adoption in global markets.

About Yose Rizal

Yose Rizal is a tech entrepreneur with 15 years of experience turning data and AI into real-world products. He founded MediaWave, Indonesia’s first social-listening platform, and PoliticaWave, a real-time election forecasting tool. As Ex-Commissioner of Telkomsel, he helped lead the digital shift of Southeast Asia’s largest mobile operator. More recently, he launched PEMILU.AI, the first generative AI campaign engine, and Reporthink.ai, an AI tool for producing investor-grade reports in under 24 hours. These innovations now converge in MWX — the world’s first decentralized agentic AI marketplace built for SMEs.