Based on the UK’s own experience, what policies or support mechanisms would be the most effective in helping businesses integrate AI into their operations and technology transfer, build a digital ecosystem, and unlock productivity gains?
AI is an exciting area of innovation in both the UK and Vietnam, and it is encouraging to see the collaboration between the two countries and the sharing of experience. From the UK’s early experience in implementing AI, several lessons have emerged, though there is still much more to learn together.
One of the first lessons is that implementing AI and realizing its potential within businesses is not primarily a technology problem; it is a business problem. It is about how a business operates and how it transforms itself through the use of AI. I think this is the perspective we also need to bring to the development of AI in businesses in Vietnam.
There are several areas that can help businesses think about AI deployment. First, we should focus on skills and leadership. What capabilities does an organization need to go through an AI transformation and really gain its benefits? A business could bring in the most talented AI technology expert, but what it really needs is a leadership and management structure that understands AI, identifies opportunities, and works with its teams to deploy AI effectively. This is fundamentally a leadership and management issue, whether through bringing in new people or upskilling existing employees.
The second area is collaboration with the wider ecosystem. AI businesses in the UK have been working with AI experts in government and academia. There is significant potential in Vietnam for collaboration between businesses, government, and academia to make the most of this rapidly developing sector. As new AI models with new capabilities emerge and more examples of effective deployment become available, the right collaboration can help accelerate implementation and allow businesses to benefit from these innovations more quickly.
The final area is unlocking finance and making the best use of digital infrastructure for AI. AI places significant demands on data centers and energy, so it is important to ensure that the necessary infrastructure is in place. At the same time, businesses with ideas and ambitions to take advantage of AI opportunities need access to finance.
I have been very pleased to see a strong start here in Vietnam. The Vietnam National Innovation Center’s program has attracted many applications and some very good new ideas. Building on this will be very important.
What opportunities do you see for deeper collaboration in AI, smart manufacturing, semiconductor technologies, and digital trade that could bring tangible benefits to Vietnam’s industrial and commercial sectors?
I think the UK and Vietnamese economies are highly complementary, and we have identified several areas where we want to deepen our cooperation.
First is AI. We are seeing significant innovation in areas such as data security and business models, as well as the impact of AI deployment. Bringing researchers together is important, and this is something the government can help facilitate. We also need to think about governance mechanisms: how AI can be deployed responsibly, and what guidelines can both foster innovation while providing regulatory clarity, so businesses know where they stand and consumers and the public can be confident that these tools are being used responsibly.
Second is manufacturing. Vietnam is a manufacturing powerhouse, and its manufacturing businesses are becoming increasingly sophisticated and moving up the value chain. The deployment of new technologies is therefore important. The UK can bring expertise in areas such as effective supply chains, management tools and different technologies to help Vietnam’s manufacturing sector develop in its next phase.
The next area is semiconductors. The UK is a player in the semiconductor sector, with a strong focus on chip design, engineering, and particular semiconductor subsectors. This aligns well with Vietnam’s ambitions.
Last year, the British Embassy co-hosted a UK-Vietnam Semiconductor Forum, bringing together major UK businesses focused on chip design and technology deployment to collaborate with Vietnam. This is not only about developing semiconductor manufacturing but also about upskilling the country. The ambition to develop and train 50,000 semiconductor engineers is something that the UK’s education and professional sectors are very focused on. There have also been collaborations with universities, including Oxford, to support this. There is therefore a lot for both sides to build on.
At the same time, we need to look ahead to technologies that have not yet been widely deployed. There is a lot of discussion around quantum computing and the frontiers of communications technology. Again, the complementarity between Vietnam and the UK bringing together the UK’s skills, expertise, and research strengths with Vietnam’s ambition to innovate and build new international partnerships provides a very strong foundation.
As fintech and digital assets become global trends, what recommendations would you make for both our nations to strengthen cooperation in sharing regulatory experience and establishing a safe legal framework for this sector?
This is really about finding the right balance between innovation and regulation. Both countries need to develop regulations in a smart and timely way to keep pace with technology, while avoiding too many barriers that could prevent them from taking advantage of new opportunities.
One important opportunity for governments and businesses is to develop regulatory sandboxes where businesses can experiment with regulation and technology and test and trial their ideas while allowing regulators to become more familiar with how these technologies work in practice. Cryptocurrencies are a good example, as financial regulators are developing their approaches and implementing initial regulations.
At the UK-Vietnam High-Level Conference, we also heard from the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority about how cryptocurrencies are being regulated. Sandboxes provide a valuable opportunity in this area. In the UK, regulators have received more than 2,000 deployments of new ideas and technologies through the sandbox, which I think is very important.
The second priority is strengthening international connections. As regulatory systems and frameworks develop, both countries should share regulatory experience and, at the business level, consider interoperability in areas such as e-payments and transaction platforms. This can build confidence across borders and support trade through digitally-secure and integrated mechanisms.
Building these connections is therefore important. There is a regulatory challenge and an opportunity for innovation, but there is also a challenge from internationalization. Both countries need to ensure that the regulatory and technological systems they develop are ready to connect internationally. It is encouraging to see innovative ideas from UK businesses being brought to Vietnam and partnerships being built with Vietnam’s rapidly-growing digital sector.
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