The journey of a Vietnamese programmer pursuing his passion for AI in Silicon Valley.

Unlike the common perception of "low-key" programmers, for Phan Nhat Huy, programming is a gateway to exploring the world. From Vietnam to Silicon Valley, Huy has had a rich journey of experiences, not only in terms of professional expertise but also in broadening his thinking and reaching the pinnacle of AI.

Breaking down stereotypes about programmers.

As a top student at a leading university in Vietnam, Huy had early exposure to AI and participated in international exchange programs. These experiences ignited his passion for AI, driving him to constantly seek learning opportunities.

Nhat Huy atFPT AI Residency.

Driven by a desire to advance further, Huy realized he needed a solid research foundation, guidance from experienced professionals, and a challenging environment to excel. This motivation prompted him to participate in an intensive research program, which he considers a "turning point in his life," laying the groundwork for important research projects and paving the way to the international scientific community's domain of AI.

Not many programmers in their twenties have the opportunity to set foot in Silicon Valley. “Thanks to this program, I not only delved deeper into AI but also gained access to major international problems.” It was from here that he joined a collaborative project with Landing AI – a company led by Professor Andrew Ng, one of the pioneers in applying AI technology to practice.

In this project, Huy participated in integrating HyperAgent – ​​an AI assistant capable of automatically generating entire software projects – into Landing AI's vision-agent system. This technology shortened the software development time for image processing from several weeks to just a few minutes, creating a major leap forward in automation and source code optimization.

Besides his research work, Huy also tried his hand at hackathons in the tech capital of San Francisco and attended international conferences such as the ACM International Conference on Automated Software Engineering. These experiences not only helped him accumulate knowledge but also expanded his network within the global AI community.

“I used to think programming was just about writing code and optimizing algorithms. But after interacting with top AI ‘brains,’ I realized that technology is not just a tool, but also the key to solving the world ’s biggest problems. More importantly, it’s an opportunity to meet brilliant people, learn how they think, and create revolutionary products.” – Huy shared about the biggest changes he experienced after his journey into the world.

The beginning of ambitious goals.

The program Huy mentioned is FPT AI Residency – where, after only 18 months of research, Huy has published 5 scientific papers, 3 of which have been published with a total of 32 citations. He is also currently filing for 2 patents in the US.

Nhat Huy (right) and Dr. Tien Nguyen (left) attend the ASE 2024 Conference.

One of Huy's notable works is RepoHYPER – a model for searching and extending the semantics of source code on graphs, which improves code auto-completion at the project-wide level. This work is currently being evaluated at the FORGE conference of ICSE 2025 – a ranked A conference in the field of Software Engineering.

Not stopping at theory, Huy also developed practical applications such as VertexVista – a multi-agent library that helps explore code databases using graphs, now integrated into CodeVista, an application that interacts with Generative AI systems similar to ChatGPT, aiming to enhance the understanding of AI coding assistants at the project level.

Meanwhile, Huy continued to refine HyperAgent for open-source implementation, while also leading a key project in the collaboration between Landing AI and FPT.

“Being part of a dedicated research community is a valuable opportunity, where I not only hone my expertise but also meet mentors and friends who share my passion for AI,” Huy shared. “Each trip, each project helps me understand the technology better, but also myself. I become a better version of myself, nurturing greater aspirations to contribute to affirming Vietnamese intelligence on the global AI map.”

Through passion, effort, and the support of FPT AI Residency, Phan Nhat Huy has had a memorable journey, broadening his worldview and making significant contributions to the field of AI. And this is just the beginning of the even greater goals he is pursuing.

FPT AI Residency is a training program for young people in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Vietnam, launched by FPT in 2021. The program not only nurtures domestic talents but also serves as a springboard for them to reach international levels. As of 2024, FPT AI Residency has successfully enrolled 5 cohorts, nurtured over 75 young talents, and published 110 research papers, including 82 papers in leading conferences and journals such as NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, CVPR, ACL, EMNLP, etc.

FPT AI Residency is currently accepting applications for Course 6. For more details, please visit: https://fpt-aicenter.com/en/ai-residency

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