International expert: Consumer electronics chips are a 'suitable' direction for Vietnam

The Vice President of the Global Semiconductor Association (SEMI) said that Vietnam should focus on chips serving consumer electronics such as smartphones and electric vehicles because both domestic and export demand are very large.

At the opening ceremony of the SEMI EXPO Vietnam 2025 semiconductor exhibition on the morning of November 7, Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung shared about Vietnam's long-term vision and determination in developing the semiconductor industry to become one of the pillars of the digital economy , knowledge economy, and green economy.

Accordingly, the Strategy for developing Vietnam's semiconductor industry to 2030 and vision to 2050 aims to develop the entire chain from research, design, packaging, testing to production, and at the same time form human resource centers and innovation centers specializing in semiconductors.

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung gave a speech at the event on November 7. Photo: Organizing Committee

Deputy Prime Minister Nguyen Chi Dung emphasized: "Vietnam has all the necessary conditions and internal resources to gradually improve its position in the semiconductor industry supply chain." He pointed out Vietnam's advantages such as a stable political system, a solid macroeconomic environment, a favorable geopolitical position, and an abundant labor force with competitive costs, especially in the fields of engineering and technology.

At the event, the Deputy Prime Minister asked the international community to "support Vietnamese enterprises in the process of building the first semiconductor chip factory, through providing equipment, technical support, human resource training, transferring technological capacity, and sharing experience in operating a production line according to international standards, to ensure that projects are implemented effectively".

Deputy Minister of Finance Nguyen Duc Tam informs about the semiconductor industry in Vietnam. Photo: BTC

Deputy Minister Nguyen Duc Tam, representative of the Ministry of Finance, added that Vietnam currently has more than 50 chip design enterprises with about 7,000 engineers, along with 15 enterprises and more than 10,000 technicians in the packaging, testing and manufacturing of semiconductor equipment and materials. Large corporations such as Samsung, Intel, Amkor, Foxconn, Hana Micron continue to expand their production scale in Vietnam, while the world's leading technology names such as NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Coherent, Marvell have chosen Vietnam as a base for chip research and development.

“These results are a testament to the confidence of global investors, and at the same time demonstrate Vietnam’s strategic progress in its journey of ‘leapfrogging’ – development based on knowledge, innovation and international cooperation,” the Deputy Minister emphasized.

You should choose a segment that is suitable for your available capacity.

Sharing on the sidelines of the event, Mr. Clark Tseng - Vice President of the Semiconductor Association SEMI assessed that Vietnam has great strengths in electronics assembly and production, especially with products such as smartphones and electric vehicles. Affirming that these are two areas with great potential, he said that chips serving consumer electronics - whether for the domestic or export market - are in strong demand.

"These chip lines often use mature technology, so investment costs are relatively affordable. This could be the direction that Vietnam should focus on," the expert said.

According to him, each country in the region can find its own advantages in the semiconductor supply chain and Vietnam should choose segments that are suitable for its available capacity. With an abundant human resource base, competitive costs and experience in the electronics field, developing design, packaging and testing capacity for consumer electronic chips is considered a "suitable" and effective direction.

Mr. Clark Tseng - Vice President of SEMI Semiconductor Association - discussed on the sidelines of SEMI EXPO Vietnam 2025. Photo: Du Lam

In addition, to take advantage of the opportunity, Vietnam needs to continue investing in infrastructure, energy, logistics and especially high-tech human resources. “Human resources are one of Vietnam’s strengths. The problem lies in how to retain talent. Retaining high-quality human resources is the core factor ,” he said.

He also commented that Vietnam has a very stable political and policy environment and has many free trade agreements with other countries. This is a great advantage in attracting investment and building new production facilities.

The Ministry of Finance is directing the National Innovation Center (NIC) to coordinate with businesses, institutes and international organizations to promote public-private cooperation and strengthen the connection between the state, schools and businesses. According to Mr. Vo Xuan Hoai - Deputy Director of NIC, Vietnam is coordinating with Samsung Group and corporations such as Amkor to prioritize development in packaging and testing with advanced technology.

"This is one of the very important and high value-added stages in the semiconductor industry. Vietnam is also aiming to form domestic chip manufacturing factories, showing very solid steps from the design, packaging, testing and later manufacturing stages," said Mr. Vo Xuan Hoai.

The SEMI EXPO Vietnam 2025 event, with a series of seminars, forums and supply chain connection activities, is considered a testament to Vietnam's efforts in expanding international cooperation and affirming its position on the global semiconductor map.

Nearly 11.6 billion USD of foreign investment in Vietnam's semiconductor industry According to Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui Hoang Phuong, Vietnam currently has over 170 foreign investment projects in the semiconductor industry, with a total registered capital of nearly 11.6 billion USD.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chip-dien-tu-tieu-dung-la-huong-di-vua-suc-voi-viet-nam-2460662.html