Vietnam, the S-shaped strip of land, attracts tech tycoons; a 50-year-old "uncle" is now taking up AI studies.

(Dan Tri Newspaper) - In recent years, Vietnam has become an attractive investment destination for many large technology corporations around the world such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and most recently, Meta Group - the parent company of Facebook.

In recent years, Vietnam has become an attractive investment destination for major global technology corporations such as Apple, Google, Microsoft, and most recently, Meta Group – the parent company of Facebook. Many large technology companies have chosen Vietnam to establish manufacturing, research, and development centers for advanced technology products, helping Vietnam emerge as a technology hub. Mr. Nguyen Van Tiep, Deputy Director of Training at the Institute of Blockchain and AI Technology, shared his perspective with a reporter from Dan Tri newspaper on Vietnam's development potential stemming from foreign technology investment, as well as the benefits that consumers will receive from these investments.

Sir, in the past two years, Vietnam has continuously welcomed leaders from many leading global technology corporations such as Apple CEO Tim Cook, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, and most recently, the Chairman of Global External Affairs of Meta Group, Mr. Nick Clegg. How does this demonstrate Vietnam's position in attracting large foreign technology corporations? - Vietnam has many opportunities to attract foreign investors. The government is promoting many investment support programs for digital transformation, policies to encourage international investors, and the construction of high-tech zones across the country, notably in Hanoi , Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City.

Vietnam, shaped like the letter S, attracts tech tycoons; a 50-year-old "uncle" is taking up AI studies ( Video : Khanh Vi).

Furthermore, Vietnam has a population of 100 million, with a large proportion being young people. This is a significant factor indicating the immense potential of our market for technology products. The young population also reflects a high-quality, dynamic workforce ready to adapt to new technologies. These are crucial factors for global technology corporations and organizations when considering investing in Vietnam or any other country. Besides a country with sound policies and political stability, a workforce that meets their requirements is equally important.

Meta Group's Chairman of Global External Affairs, Nick Clegg, recently visited Vietnam and committed to deploying Vietnamese AI and building a manufacturing plant for the Quest 3S virtual reality headset by 2025. Could you share your perspective on this investment collaboration? - Meta Group's choice of Vietnam as the manufacturing location for the Quest 3S virtual reality headset affirms Meta's confidence in Vietnam's abundant and stable labor market. Firstly, arguably the most important application of the Quest 3S virtual reality headset, once manufactured and commercialized domestically, will contribute to education. Students will be able to experience more visual and video-based learning, enhancing their creativity and practical skills. Secondly, it will contribute to research, especially in fields such as healthcare and engineering. According to research by Google and Brian and Company, over 70% of Vietnam's population uses the internet, and Vietnam's digital economy is enormous, estimated at $150 to $220 million. Vietnamese users are particularly active on Facebook , and I believe this is an ecosystem that Meta wants to focus its investment on in Vietnam. Furthermore, Vietnam has a young, demographic demographic, high income levels, and a rapidly developing economy, making it a very good market for Meta. Besides Meta, we can see that Apple has invested in and considered Vietnam a strategic market for selling its technology products such as iPhones , iPads (tablets), and Macbooks, which are particularly popular and widely used by Vietnamese consumers.

Samsung has also invested heavily in large factories in Vietnam, creating tens of thousands of jobs. More recently, there have been reports that billionaire Elon Musk will invest in and develop the Starlink system in the country in the near future. Starlink satellite internet technology will be very helpful because Vietnam is a country with many mountainous and island regions. Starlink offers high-speed transmission and wide coverage, enabling people everywhere to access the internet and participate in the digital economy, as targeted by the government. Vietnam is clearly fertile ground for attracting foreign investors, with its abundant workforce and low competitive costs compared to other countries in the region. In particular, Vietnam is a hub for supply chains in Southeast Asia and South Asia, connecting with South Korea, Japan, and other countries. Our country has many advantages and favorable conditions for corporations and technology centers to invest and choose to establish a long-term presence here. As you shared, Vietnam is a country with a young population and many innovative businesses . How will benefiting from artificial intelligence (AI) help develop businesses in particular and the country in general, sir? - One very special thing about artificial intelligence (AI) is that it's not just for large corporations and businesses; anyone can use AI. In Vietnam, the government has policies to promote digital transformation and the application of artificial intelligence, considering it a strong and important driving force for digital transformation. Currently, Vietnam's young population adapts to and grasps the applications of artificial intelligence very quickly. Particularly from 2023 to 2024, many technology startups invested in artificial intelligence (AI) applications, bringing new value and supporting socio-economic development, especially in education, and helping Vietnamese businesses and individuals thrive. People are already familiar with ChatGPT, Gemini, and other AI-generated tools used to create images, videos, content, and text. This greatly enhances the learning, development, and self-improvement process for each individual, not only in their current field of study or work but also in new fields.

Furthermore, Gen AI also greatly supports repetitive tasks and manual work, helping to increase labor productivity. Many businesses are seeking solutions to integrate Gen AI into their business models and workflows to ensure data security and begin to develop strategies for integrating Gen AI into their company's development process.

Vietnam has chosen October 10th as the National Digital Transformation Day. How does this reflect the role of technology in general and artificial intelligence in particular in the country's development, sir? - I frequently conduct training on the application of AI and digital transformation in administrative work in several localities and have noticed that they are very enthusiastic and apply AI very quickly. Everyone feels that using artificial intelligence is very easy and quickly supports tasks such as using chatbots to answer people's questions, incorporating AI into email and document drafting… When implementing AI applications in administrative work in the provinces, I have seen it bring many benefits. We should remember that Vietnam's administrative apparatus is being streamlined, which will reduce the number of civil servants in many departments. Therefore, when staffing is reduced, the application of artificial intelligence will greatly assist officials in various tasks such as analyzing and synthesizing documents, evaluating materials, and helping them access new expertise even without prior practical experience. Could you elaborate on this? - For example, in provinces and cities that are accelerating digital transformation, from the provincial Department of Information and Communications to each district, town, ward, and especially commune officials; they clearly face many difficulties due to limited information technology capabilities.

But through AI technology, they can both learn and update circulars and decrees with very specific and detailed guidance; especially, they can incorporate the local context to obtain reference materials. Here, I emphasize the phrase "reference," because AI technology still has responses with low accuracy. During training, I also stressed that regardless of the results generated by artificial intelligence, we need to process and compare them to ensure absolute accuracy. Vietnam is undergoing a strong digital transformation, and artificial intelligence is one of the core technologies to achieve this goal. From an expert's perspective, could you share the contributions AI brings? Currently, the Vietnamese government expects and positions artificial intelligence as a crucial factor in the digital transformation process, and I would like to emphasize that AI is a truly unique technology, the most special ever, accessible and usable by everyone. It's certain that the digital transformation and Industry 4.0 will now happen much faster than any previous industrial revolution. Now, students and office workers alike can access and use AI to support their learning and work, especially in jobs related to writing, creativity, marketing, and communication. Everyone, especially young people, is using AI technology extensively in their work and lives, which will accelerate the achievement of the Vietnamese government's digital transformation goals. Companies are also gathering sufficient resources to build data-driven systems and programs to integrate and leverage AI within their organizations. I believe this will happen very quickly in the near future.

What are your views on the potential for automation in the future, and the possibility of AI replacing certain jobs? - AI will replace repetitive, basic tasks and highly automated jobs, requiring workers to learn and adapt to this change. It's similar to the period over 20 years ago when we first started using Word and Excel; at that time, someone using Excel could calculate much faster than someone who did manual note-taking. So, those who did manual note-taking had to learn how to use computers and Excel. In this era of increasingly deep integration of AI into all aspects of work and life, I see a huge shift in skills and knowledge, as well as changes in old jobs and the emergence of new ones. I think this change is a natural progression of societal and technological development. Many students have asked me how to use Gen AI to assist with their assignments, especially the GPT chat tool, without becoming dependent or lazy. There are two main reasons: firstly, we are currently using Gen AI in the same way we use Google – meaning we only ask to look up information. Secondly, when AI provides results, users often have a judgmental mindset, and as I've observed, this is a closed-minded approach. This prevents us from fully exploiting the effectiveness of Gen AI; we tend to judge and generalize the results immediately. This is very dangerous because users often cannot assess whether the answer is accurate or not. Therefore, we need skills and knowledge to evaluate the results returned by artificial intelligence, as well as guidance on the mindset and methods of using AI to maximize its effectiveness for learning.

So, what changes do businesses need to make, sir? - For businesses, I see they are exploring various methods and approaches, and inviting experts to train, apply, and develop Gen AI. In reality, Vietnamese companies are very dynamic, adapting very quickly, and they will quickly achieve these goals. After the Covid-19 pandemic and the economic crisis, businesses are currently facing many difficulties. The first step they need to take is to organize training programs to help employees use Gen AI correctly and apply it to their daily work. The goal is to ensure employees use Gen AI without becoming dependent on it, while also guaranteeing data security for the business. Clearly, businesses are eager for a comprehensive solution to integrate and apply GenAI into their systems and strategies, but this is not feasible at the moment because no one knows how far AI will develop and what tools will support us. I believe that people and businesses need to adapt and learn; the term "lifelong learning" is being mentioned frequently now. Therefore, businesses will need to adapt very quickly and change rapidly in the process of developing and integrating AI technology. What contributions is the Institute of Blockchain and AI Technology making to the development of the country, sir? - Currently, at the Institute of Blockchain and AI Technology, we have many research, training, and development projects for Blockchain and AI applications, such as the goal of training 1 million Vietnamese people to use and apply AI to support their work and lives.

Furthermore, a very important product that we are working on day and night and hope to make widely available to the people is the MasterTeck Platform. We update and standardize programs on AI, Blockchain, and technology to ensure that every Vietnamese citizen has a platform for accurate learning and knowledge updates. Finally, we also have an AI-powered legal lookup product, aiming to ensure that every Vietnamese citizen can access and understand the law when carrying out any activity in their lives or work. In particular, this tool greatly supports the state apparatus, especially at the commune and ward levels, in remote areas, so that citizens and local officials can quickly and promptly access guidance and directives from the government. Some argue that at some point, the operating costs of AI will become saturated with the costs of labor. That will be the point where conflicts and clashes between workers and AI will erupt. He thinks this could happen and what humans need to do to avoid being replaced by AI? - AI is a technology that will develop alongside humanity in the future, and we should be open to embracing it and preparing, of course, for the worst-case scenarios, so that humans do not lose their autonomy. Any development process in history will always have those who adapt, but also those who are left behind. With the current story of AI, we are seeing this more and more clearly.

Currently in Vietnam, I see many people in their 50s and 50s still learning and using AI. This is fantastic, and I think Vietnam will never be left behind. Thanks to the efforts to learn and the strong support policies from the government, we will use AI as a powerful tool for socio-economic development, and those who do not embrace or openly use AI will be at a disadvantage in the future. We can see that in late 2022 and early 2023, there were many debates in the West about GPT chat plagiarism or the use of this tool reducing creativity, academic quality, and research. But now, a large number of professors and scholars abroad are using AI to support their learning and research. Most recently, we have the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, a prime example of AI technology supporting human development, in the research on proteins by the team of scientists David Baker, Demis Hassabis, and John Jumper. Clearly, from the early days of GPT Chat, the academic community had many concerns and assessments about its accuracy, transparency, and bias. But now they are using and applying AI very successfully, especially as demonstrated by the recent Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Thank you for your time for this conversation!

Content: Nam Doan

Photo: Quyet Thang

Video: Khanh Vi

Design: Tuan Huy

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