Recently in Sumatra, Indonesia, there have been major landslides and flash floods that have caused extensive damage in affected areas such as Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra. Severe damage has occurred in various areas. Thousands of homes have been damaged, infrastructure has collapsed and many victims have been separated from their families.
This disaster has claimed a huge number of lives. The latest update on 1 December 2025 states that 1.8 million people have been affected by the disaster and more than 50,000 million people have fled to safer areas. However, many victims are still unable to contact their families or locate their relatives due to network disruptions.
On 29 November, Starlink announced on social media platform X that it would assist Sumatra with access to the Starlink network. Elon Musk, the owner of the company, reposted this announcement with a red heart symbol. This free internet assistance will be provided until the end of December 2025 in Sumatra, Indonesia, which has been affected by natural disasters.
Starlink is a low-orbit satellite-based internet service that can provide network coverage in remote areas that do not have internet access. With the internet down in the affected areas, people have difficulty communicating with their children, relatives and distant family members. So, with this assistance, disaster victims can contact their distant family members and relatives.
In a 1.38-second post by an X account with the username @NyaiBubu (Bubsky), the joy and gratitude of the community after receiving assistance from Elon Musk in the form of free internet access was shared. In the post, a mother can be seen carrying her crying child while sharing the news with her family. The post also conveys the community’s gratitude to Starlink for providing them with internet access and to the police chief of Tapanuli Tengah for helping coordinate the community to queue up to use the internet or inform their families. This was crucial to ensure families were informed that they were safe. The beneficiaries of this assistance stated, ‘This is what we have been searching for all this time; we can now inform our families because for the past three days, we were unsure how to reach them.’
And yes, Starlinx’s assistance shows that aid today is no longer just about sending food and medicine, but also about providing digital infrastructure, which is a very important means of communication in this day and age. Elon Musk took advantage of this situation to introduce his creation, Starlinx, a satellite that can be used in remote areas that do not have network access. Elon Musk may not refer to his actions as diplomacy, but the social and psychological effects of his actions are more diplomatic than formal statements by officials. He builds trust, creates goodwill, and reinforces the positive image of the United States as an innovative and responsive country in humanitarian matters.
To understand this phenomenon, we can look at it from the perspective of soft power as introduced by Joseph Nye. Soft power is the ability to influence a person or group of people through appeal, positive image and trust. And this is exactly what happened. Starlinx arrived in the disaster-stricken area not with symbols of the state or political intervention, but with technological solutions that directly helped meet the needs of the community.
This is a new form of diplomacy, namely technology-based humanitarian soft power. This assistance helped communities affected by disasters, and with the rapid dissemination of information, people saw and learned that a product called Starlinx could provide internet access in remote areas that had difficulty accessing the internet. So, people from disaster-affected areas and those who only saw the news about ‘Stralinx assistance for Sumatra’ were tempted to use Starlinx from Elon Musk.
Global technology companies such as SpaceX now play a strategic role in shaping images, expanding influence, and even changing global public perception through humanitarian actions. Whereas disaster relief used to come in the form of logistics and personnel, digital connectivity is now part of humanitarian missions. This shows that technology is no longer just a product, but an instrument of diplomacy that brings together interests, solidarity, and innovation.
This assistance from Starlinx creates a positive impression, builds reputation and fosters trust in Starlinx and Elon Musk as the owner of Starlinx. Not only Starlinx, but even the United States is seen as the country where SpaceX (the Starlinx company) is based and is also viewed as a country full of technological innovation.
Technology here becomes a medium of solidarity that elegantly unites humanitarian interests and diplomacy. This is the new face of diplomacy in the 21st century, where non-state actors such as global technology companies are able to influence, direct and build images not only through advertisements, speeches or political agreements, but also through innovations that can directly touch people’s lives.
Starlinx’s assistance shows that diplomacy is no longer solely the domain of countries and diplomats, but can also be carried out by innovators, companies, individuals and technology. Elon Musk has been able to do something that is usually the domain of countries by being present in the midst of disasters, helping citizens and building close relationships with governments.
This phenomenon indicates that global power is not only determined by flags and institutions, but also by the ability of companies and individuals to provide solutions. In this technological age, we see who can provide real help through energy, data and connectivity. In this context, Starlinx has positioned itself as a global infrastructure that is not only technological, but also political and strategic.
In my opinion, this is a new chapter in diplomacy, where aid is not only a matter of solidarity but also of building trust, influence and long-term dependence, where diplomacy is no longer just about negotiations but also about internet connections and a sense of being helped. Soft power is no longer just about culture or films but also takes the form of low-orbit satellites.
Not only that, this phenomenon also shows how the line between humanitarian and strategic interests is becoming increasingly blurred in the digital age. When technology becomes a basic necessity for society, those who are able to provide the infrastructure automatically wield considerable influence. Even actions that appear to be purely altruistic can create long-term dependence, both technically and psychologically. This is where the complexity of soft power lies: it operates through the gratitude and closeness that naturally develop. Communities feel assisted, governments feel supported, and companies gain enhanced reputations and stronger bargaining positions. This represents a new dynamic in technology-based global relations.
