Vietnam is Apple's destination in the race for AI-integrated home appliances.

Apple is making an unprecedented move: choosing Vietnam as the primary manufacturing location for a whole new category of products – from home security cameras, home appliance control screens with built-in artificial intelligence (AI), to desktop robots capable of interacting with motion.

According to Bloomberg, this is the first time Apple has not launched a new product line in Vietnam - showing Vietnam's increasingly important role in the global technology supply chain.

Apple's smart home control device with a screen of about 7 inches is expected to launch in the spring of 2026.

The device not only acts as a home control panel, but also integrates an upgraded AI version of Siri, allowing users to give voice commands in a more natural way - similar to how AI chatbot platforms work today.

A year later, Apple plans to introduce a desktop robot with a 9-inch screen mounted on a mobile arm that can automatically adjust its viewing direction according to the user.

Despite many technical challenges, this project is seen as a continuation of the technological thinking that Apple developed during its self-driving car research phase, now shifting to home robots and AI.

What all three devices have in common is that they are planned to be manufactured in Vietnam, with the participation of BYD - a Chinese corporation that is becoming an important assembly partner of Apple. BYD will take on the entire assembly, inspection and packaging stage before the product is distributed globally.

From satellite factory to technology stronghold

For years, Vietnam has been the place where Apple has manufactured established devices such as AirPods, Apple Watch, iPad, Mac and HomePod. The move of a new product line to Vietnam at an early stage represents a significant change in the way Apple allocates its production chain outside of China.

Nikkei and Bloomberg analysts say Vietnam is moving from being an industrial satellite to a technology stronghold that can participate more deeply in technical design and product testing.

Although the US imposes a 20% import tax on Vietnamese goods, Apple accepts this cost in exchange for the security of its supply chain and the flexibility of manufacturing in a country with a stable political environment and a rapidly growing technical workforce.

The Vietnamese Government is also promoting cooperation programs on digital transformation, clean energy and high-quality human resource development to meet the needs of the industry.

High-tech wave pouring into Vietnam

Apple’s presence is part of a general trend as more and more large technology corporations such as Google, Dell or Goertek expand their investments in Vietnam. This Southeast Asian country is being seen as a strategic “balance point” in the context of the US promoting its “on-shoring” policy.

Despite still being subject to reciprocal taxes, international corporations all acknowledge that Vietnam has advantages in human resources and a stable political environment - a bright spot amid global insecurity.

NVIDIA, Marvell, Synopsys, Foxconn and a series of US semiconductor companies have also recently expanded AI and chip projects in Vietnam.

According to Reuters, these corporations not only invest in production but also seek Vietnamese partners in training engineers and setting up AI research and data centers - factors that show that Vietnam is starting to enter the higher value chain of the technology industry.

From a broader perspective, experts say Apple's generation of AI products in Vietnam will be a test to determine whether Vietnam can become a true technology hub, not just a low-cost assembly point.

If successful, this could pave the way for research and development (R&D) and technology testing activities right in Vietnam./.

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/viet-nam-la-diem-den-cua-apple-trong-cuoc-dua-do-gia-dung-tich-hop-ai-post1070710.vnp