Leader of Ministry of Science and Technology: Artificial intelligence is a historic opportunity for Vietnam to make a breakthrough

Artificial intelligence (AI) is transforming modern life, from education and healthcare to communication and governance. Rapid advances in AI offer growth opportunities, but also pose global ethical and safety challenges. Issues of fairness, responsibility and public trust are now at the heart of international dialogue to ensure AI is used for the common good.

On the afternoon of December 2, the seminar "AI for humanity: AI ethics and safety in the new era" took place in Hanoi. The event, within the framework of the VinFuture 2025 Science and Technology Week, brought together scientists, politicians and inventors to discuss responsible AI development, aiming at humanistic values.

Vietnam is determined to develop AI technology according to open philosophy.

In his opening speech at the seminar, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui The Duy affirmed that AI is a historic opportunity for Vietnam to make a breakthrough.

In fact, Vietnam issued its first AI Strategy in 2021, but AI is developing at an incredible pace. It is expected that by the end of 2025, Vietnam will announce an updated AI Strategy and AI Law.

This is not only a legal framework but also a declaration of national vision, identifying that AI must become Vietnam's intellectual infrastructure, contributing to social welfare, sustainable development and enhancing national competitiveness.

AI today is not only an applied technology, but is becoming an essential infrastructure like electricity, telecommunications or the Internet; any country that masters AI will have a superior advantage in socio-economics and security - defense.

Therefore, Vietnam is building a national AI supercomputing center, an open data ecosystem and a Vietnamese AI infrastructure towards autonomy, while at the same time implementing comprehensive AI at a rapid pace, making AI a universal "intelligent assistant" for all people to improve social productivity and expand access to knowledge, a step forward that previously only high-ranking leaders had access to.

Deputy Minister Bui The Duy affirmed that Vietnam is determined to develop AI technology according to the open philosophy: Open standards, open data, open source code. "Open" is the way to receive global knowledge, master technology, develop Make in Vietnam and contribute back to humanity. "Open" is also a condition to ensure safety and transparency in AI applications.

For AI to develop, the domestic market must be large enough; without applications, there is no market and Vietnamese AI businesses cannot mature.

Therefore, according to Deputy Minister Bui The Duy, the state will promote the application of AI in industries and state agencies, and the National Technology Innovation Fund will allocate 30-40% of support resources, including AI vouchers for small and medium-sized enterprises, so that the Vietnamese market can truly become the cradle of strong AI enterprises.

"We emphasize AI transformation, not just 'AI application' but a comprehensive restructuring process of organizational, industry and national operations based on AI, to create new capacities in management, production and innovation, similar to industrialization or digital transformation. With 100 million young, dynamic and tech-savvy people, Vietnam is both a large market and a place to create new AI products; together with 11 strategic technology groups, computing infrastructure, rich data, Make in Vietnam digital enterprises and an ambitious startup - research community, we have all the conditions to go fast and strong in the AI era," he said.

Vietnam's AI path is defined by the word "and"

Along with opportunities, according to Deputy Minister Bui The Duy, AI also poses challenges in terms of ethics, employment and social trust. Therefore, Vietnam develops AI in a fast - safe - humane direction, in which AI supports humans but humans are still the subjects who make the final decisions.

In the coming time, Vietnam will issue a National AI Ethics Code, AI Strategy and AI Law with the following key viewpoints: Risk-based management; ensuring transparency and accountability; putting people at the center; encouraging domestic AI development; developing AI as a driving force for rapid and sustainable growth; and protecting national digital sovereignty based on AI data, infrastructure and technology.

In the digital age, technology is global but data is local. Important applications must operate on Vietnam's AI infrastructure, harmoniously combining global and national platforms. This is an opportunity for developing countries, where the advantage lies not only in core technology but also in the context, culture, data and problems of each country.

Deputy Minister Bui The Duy also affirmed that Vietnam's AI path is defined by the word "And": Global and local; cooperation and autonomy; technology and application; elite and mass; open data and protected data. AI development must be based on four pillars: institutions - infrastructure - human resources - AI culture, connected and complementary to each other.

Overview of the seminar "AI for humanity: AI ethics and safety in the new era." (Photo: Minh Son/Vietnam+)

AI and AI problems are also an inseparable "and". AI creates challenges, but AI also helps solve them: from training human resources to detecting ethical violations. AI matures through the very problems it creates, and it is our responsibility to live with and govern wisely.

According to the leader of the Ministry of Science and Technology, AI is a historic opportunity for Vietnam to break through and become a developed country with high income. The "dragon" countries all make good use of industrial revolutions. Meanwhile, after decades of construction and development, Vietnam has become the 32nd largest economy in the world and has all the conditions to enter the AI era, improve labor productivity, double-digit growth, strengthen governance capacity and protect the country.

"The Vietnamese AI Manifesto is: Humanity - Openness - Safety - Autonomy - Cooperation - Inclusion - Sustainability," Deputy Minister Bui The Duy affirmed./.

(Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/lanh-dao-bo-kh-cn-tri-tue-nhan-tao-la-co-hoi-lich-su-de-viet-nam-but-pha-post1080526.vnp