AI startups thrive in Vietnam

Nguyen Thi Thu Trang, founder and chief technology officer of Vbee, a firm specializing in natural language processing and conversational AI solutions, said AI helps them create products that offer more natural interactions and can assist in tasks that are not overly complex but may be tedious.

This startup has two million end users and more than 300 business customers, and recently won US$100,000 in Qualcomm Vietnam’s QVIC 2024, a competition to identify and nurture innovative companies.

Olli Technology, another tech firm, recently developed "BuddyOS for AI Toys," an operating system that uses generative AI to help manufacturers create smart toys capable of interacting with children.

Hai Ta, co-founder and CEO of Olli, said AI helps its projects stand out and several of its strategic partners are considering using its operating system in their products.

AI has been attracting interest from tech corporations and investors in Vietnam and globally.

At QVIC 2024, 70% of all entries and more than half of the top 10 products used AI.

Nguyen Thanh Thao, staff manager at Qualcomm Vietnam and a judge in the competition, said startups are leveraging AI to optimize and make their products more competitive, indicating Vietnamese businesses are catching up with global trends and ready to enter the international market.

Vbee's AI-powered solutions. Photo courtesy of Vbee

Startups said they are adopting AI to meet market needs. A report published by accounting firm CPA Australia in August said eight out of 10 Vietnamese businesses have used AI in the past 12 months, higher than the 69% average for the Asia-Pacific region.

Market research platform Markets and Data estimated Vietnam's AI market to be worth $470 million in 2022 and expected it to grow to $1.52 billion by 2030.

Thao said most major technology corporations and many startups consider AI development as a key growth strategy.

AI also helps new enterprises attract investors. A report by Albert J Rapha on the East Asia Forum said venture capital funds have invested $95 million in AI in Vietnam.

At the recent GenAI Summit 2024 held in HCMC experts from Google said Vietnam's AI industry and startups have advantages in terms of human resources and policy support.

But with many firms investing in AI, the competition in the industry is very high.

Olli’s Hai Ta said the biggest challenge for AI firms is the need to continuously innovate and improve technology to stay ahead of the market.

This requires massive investment in research and development and a team of skilled AI specialists.

Trang said companies also have to try hard to persuade Vietnamese users to pay for AI solutions.

Experts at the summit said universities, businesses and the government need to collaborate to build a strong AI industry.

Thao said regulators need to come up with policies to prevent the negative impacts of AI while startups should be proactive in their operations.

"I recommend that startups get things right from the beginning, standardize processes, act transparently, and aim for sustainable development and long-term collaboration."