Booming startups with artificial intelligence (AI)

Vietnam is making strong progress in the research, development and application of artificial intelligence (AI). Start-ups in the AI field are flourishing and some businesses have launched widely applied products and achieved initial success.

There are more and more AI applications and AI startups researched and developed by Vietnamese people - Photo: MINH DUC

Earlier this July, AI Hay - an AI-based knowledge search and research platform - announced the completion of a Series A funding round worth $10 million, bringing the total capital raised to over $18 million.

Vietnamese intellectual product

AI Hay was founded by a team of experienced and passionate Vietnamese engineers who have successfully built and developed many digital platforms in Vietnam.

With the power of Generative AI and interactivity, AI Hay helps users ask any question and receive accurate, reliable results with transparent quotes, suitable for Vietnamese culture and language.

Mr. Tran Quang Duc, CEO of AI Hay, said AI must be a universal tool, reaching every Vietnamese person, starting with students who are considered the force that builds the future of the country.

"This investment is an important resource for us to build that future, a great encouragement for the team. This shows the growing trust of international funds in the intelligence and products built by Vietnamese people, as well as Vietnam's determination to popularize AI in the spirit of Resolution 57," Mr. Duc shared.

Previously, NYB.AI, started by a group of young Vietnamese people, was granted a patent in Singapore and was selected by NVIDIA (a US multinational technology corporation) to participate in the Ignition AI program in the US.

NYB.AI uses AI to accelerate drug discovery to improve the treatment of serious diseases, bringing advanced medical solutions more accessible to everyone.

Instead of relying on unrealistic simulations, the model's AI technology "learns" from millions of biological interaction data, scans and analyzes billions of compounds, accurately predicts which compounds are likely to interact with pathogens and immediately eliminates those that are not potential.

"Instead of spending years screening compounds in the lab, AI can help shorten this process to a few months, saving costs and improving the success rate," said NYB.AI chief technology officer Trieu Vu Duy.

Impressive achievements

In response to people's concerns about information about administrative units after the merger from July 1, Viettel has developed an AI assistant via a web platform at https://tracuuphuongxa.trolyao.org/. People can easily look up information about the new administrative units from their computers or smartphones.

Along with that, you can ask questions about the information that the administrative unit wants to learn, the virtual assistant will provide information with corresponding text sources. Viettel has been successful with the model of legal virtual assistant, civil servant virtual assistant, so it has accumulated the habit of asking questions of Vietnamese people and giving practical answers.

The change of administrative boundaries, names, and related regulations has caused confusion among people and businesses, leading to a sudden increase in the need for questions and answers and the implementation of administrative procedures.

The Citizen - Business AI Assistant developed by Vietnam Posts and Telecommunications Group ( VNPT ) can automatically answer information 24/7, accurately and immediately answering thousands of questions about new administrative boundaries, changed names, documents that need to be adjusted (household registration, CCCD, business license, land use right certificate...).

In particular, based on the information provided by the user (type of document to be changed, old/new address, type of business), the AI assistant automatically determines the administrative procedures to be performed.

From there, guide the steps, documents to prepare and provide direct links to the electronic forms to be filled out, even support automatic filling of part of the information if available from the national database, minimizing errors and time for people.

Save processing time

VNPT has developed an integrated AI application to support administrative procedure processing at important touch points to help officials and civil servants process more effectively. In Ho Chi Minh City, the AI application to support administrative procedure processing has been tested since May 2025 with positive results.

The AI assistant that automates the process has supported the reception of an average of 10,000 - 13,000 direct applications per day, saving processing time of more than 1,400 hours/day, more than 30,800 hours/month and 369,600 hours/year, equivalent to the work of 175 officers.

This AI assistant also supports receiving 5,000 - 6,000 online applications per day. Thereby, it helps save processing time of more than 550 hours/day, more than 12,100 hours/month and 145,200 hours/year, equivalent to the work of nearly 70 officers.

There are more than 700 AI startups

Recently, many Vietnamese startups have raised millions of USD in investment capital from investment funds around the world, with an explosion in the number of AI startups as the AI ecosystem in Vietnam has been invested in and developed strongly.

Data from PitchBook Data Inc. shows that Vietnam had about 60 startups operating in the AI field in 2022, but by the end of 2024, there were 765 startups and many more in 2025. With this number, Vietnam ranked second in the number of AI startups in Southeast Asia, after Singapore.

Meanwhile, a report by Research and Markets predicts that the AI market in Vietnam will increase from 2.15 billion USD (2023) to 23.06 billion USD (2028) and an annual growth rate of 48.5%.

Building the future with AI

"Building the future with AI" was chosen as the theme of Tuoi Tre Start-up Award 2025.

In its sixth season, the program continues to unleash the potential for innovation in science and technology, searching for and introducing start-ups that apply key digital technologies to help solve practical problems in research, management, production, innovation, and provide solutions in a variety of fields.

Awarding the best project of Tuoi Tre Start-up Award 2024 - Photo: Q. DINH

Tuoi Tre Start-up Award 2025, organized by Tuoi Tre newspaper and Ho Chi Minh City Youth Union, in collaboration with Global Integration Business Consulting (GIBC) and the Business Startup Support Center (BSSC), officially launched on July 22.

The program hopes to find and honor potential startups who make strong contributions to the overall development of science and technology in the country, aiming for the country to have important breakthroughs in science and technology development by 2030, raising the country's position in the region and the world.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/ram-ro-khoi-nghiep-voi-tri-tue-nhan-tao-ai-20250719230437692.htm