Removing bottlenecks, elevating Vietnamese AI enterprises

DNVN - On October 9, the Vietnam Artificial Intelligence Forum - AI360 2025 officially opened in Hanoi, under the auspices of the Ministry of Science and Technology and organized by the Vietnam Association of Software and Information Technology Services (VINASA).

With the theme "Building Smart Enterprises and Society with AI", the AI360 Forum gathered 300 delegates, including leaders of ministries, departments, branches, experts, and the technology business community.

AI's strong foothold in Vietnam

Reports at the forum confirmed the remarkable progress that Vietnam has made on the global AI map. Mr. Nguyen Khac Lich, Director of the Department of Information Technology Industry ( Ministry of Science and Technology ), emphasized that Vietnam has continuously surpassed the global average for three consecutive years in the Global AI Readiness Index. According to the Oxford Insights 2024 Report, Vietnam is currently ranked 59/193 countries, in the Top 5 ASEAN countries.

Mr. Nguyen Khac Lich, Director of the Department of Information Technology Industry, Ministry of Science and Technology, spoke at the forum.

In particular, digital trust in Vietnam is growing rapidly. According to the World AI Index 2025 (WIN), Vietnam ranks 6th out of 40 countries, 3rd globally in terms of trust in AI and 5th in terms of AI acceptance.

The AI ​​market in Vietnam is recognized as one of the fastest growing markets in the region. The market is forecast to reach a value of 1.52 billion USD by 2030, with a steady growth rate of 20% per year (or about 16% according to Google's forecast). This strong development is clearly demonstrated by the fact that on average, every hour, there are five more businesses starting to apply AI in 2024. Notably, investment in domestic AI businesses has increased 8 times in just one year, from 10 million USD (2023) to 80 million USD (2024).

Leading industries in providing AI solutions in Vietnam include information technology (31%), finance-banking (22%), education (17%), e-commerce and healthcare (15%).

Bottlenecks and solutions in AI development

Although the AI ​​ecosystem in Vietnam is ready for strong development thanks to its young and potential human resources, experts at the forum pointed out "bottlenecks" that need to be resolved.

One of the biggest problems is the lack of high-quality human resources, which affects 45% of AI providers. In addition, 23% of businesses have difficulty developing data and computing infrastructure, while 30% are concerned about the lack of a clear legal corridor. In particular, 50% of AI providers said that data is lacking or inaccessible to standards, and 51% of training facilities have problems with the quality of training data.

The Vietnam Artificial Intelligence Annual Report 2025 by the Institute of Information Technology, Hanoi National University also pointed out a "core bottleneck" in the AI ​​value chain: the large gap between development investment and application investment. While solution providers are increasing the scale of their projects (mostly investing from 1 billion to 3 billion VND), the AI ​​expenditure of application units in 5 key areas (Education, Health, Finance, Transportation, Industry) has not been focused on.

Mr. Nguyen Van Khoa, Chairman of VINASA, said that VINASA has identified three urgent tasks to remove current bottlenecks:

Solving application and management problems : Focus on transforming thinking from testing (POC) to creating business value (Business Value).

Standardizing Capabilities : Announcing the Draft AI Capability Maturity Framework (STAIR), a strategic tool to help businesses self-assess and orient their AI capabilities.

Building a connected ecosystem : Bringing AI from the laboratory to practice, through activities connecting components in the ecosystem between the Government - Research Institutes - Enterprises and application organizations.

Director Nguyen Khac Lich said that the Vietnamese government has identified artificial intelligence as one of the pillars of the national digital technology industry. The Ministry of Science and Technology is preparing to submit a draft AI Law - an important step to perfect the institution and ensure the safe and transparent development of AI.

To create a market for AI, the government will increase public spending on AI, the National Technology Innovation Fund (NATIF) will support AI applications, and implement a public procurement mechanism that prioritizes domestic digital technology solutions. The goal is to turn the domestic market into a launching pad to upgrade and develop Vietnamese AI enterprises.

Hien Thao

Source: https://doanhnghiepvn.vn/cong-nghe/thao-go-diem-nghen-nang-tam-doanh-nghiep-ai-viet/20251009051916686