The core of competition lies in the product, not just in the technology.

Strategic thinking from "national problems"

Opening the dialogue, the Minister emphasized Vietnam's development context with the goal of becoming a high-income country by 2045. To achieve high and sustainable growth, Vietnam must solve "big problems" such as digital infrastructure, urban operations, improving the efficiency of the public service apparatus, developing science and technology and innovation.

Photo caption — Minister of Science and Technology had a dialogue with technology enterprises.

Technology enterprises like CMC need to put themselves in relation to national goals: “Strategic thinking is not just the company's own strategy, but the ability to see the connections between the enterprise and the Government, Party, and State to create driving force together”.

The Minister also advised against copying the successful models of large corporations: “No one succeeds by following the same path. You have to find your own path.”

New products are what bring value.

The message emphasized by the Minister many times is that Vietnamese enterprises that want to create sustainable competitive advantages must focus on products.

Many domestic units invest heavily in research, but “stop halfway” because they cannot bring technology into commercial products: New products are what bring value, help businesses compete; the rate of converting research results into products in Vietnam is still low... this is a big bottleneck. To go all the way, businesses must control the whole chain: Design - integration - production - market - after-sales service.

In a discussion about AI and CMC's C-OpenAI ecosystem, the Minister suggested that businesses should not chase after "all-purpose" platforms, but should choose specific segments and problems that can make a clear difference. "Talk less about technology, talk more about products. In the end, the market and customers only pay for products," Minister Nguyen Manh Hung emphasized.

Another important content is the globalization path of Vietnamese enterprises. The outsourcing model (hiring units to perform jobs, tasks...) although it brings revenue, cannot be a strategic pillar to create long-term advantages. Outsourcing should only be considered as "seed capital" for enterprises to accumulate financial resources and experience, from which to invest in core technology and own products. If it only stops at processing, it will be difficult for enterprises to build a Vietnamese technology brand in the international arena. If they want to go far, they must possess intellectual property, platforms, and products with their own mark.

With CMC Global's orientation to shift from traditional outsourcing to AIX service provider, the Minister acknowledged that it was a step in the right direction, but also sent a message: "If we have declared to become a Top AIX Service Provider, CMC Global must steadfastly pursue it to the end, turning it into a core value, not just a slogan."

AI or semiconductors?

When asked whether CMC should choose AI or semiconductors to create a breakthrough, the Minister said that the question of "what to choose" is not as important as "whether you dare to do it to the end or not". For a business of CMC's scale, AI is a natural choice if it has a clear data, product and market strategy.

Semiconductors are a broad field, it is not necessary to start with billion-dollar projects; businesses can choose suitable segments such as design, IP, testing, IoT chips... as long as they have enough determination and resources to go long-term. AI and semiconductors are closely linked: AI always has semiconductors and semiconductors increasingly need AI to optimize design and production.

“A right decision is not as good as a decision that is followed through. The important thing is to make a choice and then follow it through, not half-heartedly,” Minister Nguyen Manh Hung shared.

Source: https://baotintuc.vn/xa-hoi/cot-loi-canh-tranh-nam-o-san-pham-khong-phai-chi-o-cong-nghe-20251119220702218.htm