The Hanoi University of Science and Technology (HUST) has officially launched a HUST-Naver AI Centre at HUST. In the long term, the AI Centre will serve as the place to connect domestic and international AI operators to deploy basic research and to create “Made in Vietnam” core technologies.
According to news reports, the centre has been established under a model of a mixed international research cluster, jointly invested in, and run by HUST and the Naver Group from the Republic of Korea. The centre will focus on promoting AI applications in various industries and areas. The aim is to accelerate digital transformation and boost the 4.0 industrial revolution in Vietnam, according to Dr Ta Hai Tung, the Director of the Institute of Information and Communication Technology, under HUST.
Professor Ho Tu Bao, a prestigious Vietnamese scientist in the field of AI and machine learning, was appointed as the science director of the AI Centre. Bao shared that the digital environment is creating an invaluable opportunity for the country to develop. This requires the establishment of excellent scientific centres to master important technologies, and the HUST – Naver AI Centre is a step in the right direction. The centre has more than 50 scientists from HUST and other experts from universities, institutes, and technology groups to work in areas related to AI and AI applications.
To promote automation, industry 4.0 utilises ultra-high-speed connectivity, AI, machine learning, and real-time data. Hanoi wants AI to raise public sector productivity, particularly online public services to reduce processing and waiting times, public servant numbers, and other costs. Using AI to boost national security is also high on the agenda. If realised, Vietnam’s 2030 targets will take it into ASEAN’s top four and the world’s top 50 countries in terms of AI research, development, and application.
Earlier in March, Hanoi announced its plan to install free WiFi hotspots around the city as part of its aim to digitally transform and improve tourism in the capital city. Currently, 25 free WiFi hotspots have been set up at popular tourist destinations in Hanoi. Hanoi will set up nine more hotspots over the next few months.
The government is currently making efforts to implement its National Programme on Digital Transformation with a 10-year vision, under which the country will research, develop, and master a series of “Made in Vietnam” digital products. Furthermore, the Minister of Information and Communications, Nguyen Manh Hung, recently said that the ICT sector has the central responsibility to digitally transform and make Vietnam a high-income country.
At a meeting with representatives of the ICT industry, the Minister said that industry 4.0 is mainly related to the digital revolution; that is digital technology and transformation. Each new industrial revolution will create opportunities for only a few countries to make breakthroughs to become developed countries. The nuclear responsibility in digital transformation has been given to the ICT sector, community, and associations.
IT experts say it is necessary to immediately deploy a number of solutions to be able to master digital infrastructure and digital platforms towards developing safe national cyberspace as well as learning “Make in Vietnam” production technology.
Additionally, it is important to ensure IT system safety to make Vietnamese application platforms more popular. The government wants digital technologies and services to be universal with reasonable prices and convenient for everyone.
