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IFRC Vietnam AI Readiness Index Proposal

Vietnam’s AI Ambition: Can the 2030 Vision Become Reality?

The Prime Minister has unveiled Vietnam’s ambitious Artificial Intelligence (AI) masterplan through 2030, with a bold objective: to place Vietnam among the top four ASEAN countries and within the world’s top 50 nations in AI research, development, and application.

Current Position

According to the Oxford AI Readiness Index, Vietnam currently ranks:

  • 76th globally (score: 42.944)
  • 6th in ASEAN, behind:
    • Singapore (6th globally, 78.704)
    • Malaysia (28th, 62.434)
    • Thailand (60th, 48.156)
    • Indonesia (62nd, 47.528)
    • Philippines (74th, 42.944)

While progress has been made, Vietnam still trails regional leaders.

Key 2030 Targets

The government’s strategy includes several concrete goals:

  • Establish 10 reputable AI brands or platforms
  • Build 3 national big data centers to provide businesses with high-performance computing
  • Strengthen AI adoption across industries and public services

These initiatives aim to accelerate Vietnam’s digital transformation and boost competitiveness.

Are These Goals Realistic?

Vietnam’s ambitions are significant—but the question remains: are they achievable?

To answer this, it is essential to:

  • Assess current strengths and weaknesses
  • Define clear, measurable indicators
  • Track progress over time through consistent benchmarking
  • Compare performance with regional and global peers

Existing AI and Digital Readiness Indexes

Vietnam is already included—often with modest rankings—in several global indexes:

  • Government AI Readiness Index
  • Global Cities AI Readiness Index
  • Cisco Digital Readiness Index
  • Digital Adoption Index (DAI)
  • IBM Global AI Adoption Index
  • Inclusive Internet Index
  • Digital Economy and Society Index (DESI)
  • Digital Society Index (DSI)
  • AI Watch Index
  • AI Hiring Index
  • Digital Intelligence Index

While useful, these indexes typically focus on specific dimensions (e.g., policy, adoption, or labor market) and do not provide a comprehensive view.

Toward a Vietnam AI Development Index (VAIDI)

A more holistic framework—such as a Vietnam AI Development Index (VAIDI)—could better capture the country’s progress. This would combine multiple dimensions into a unified, transparent, and comparable system.

Proposed Pillars

  1. Government & Regulation
    • Vision and strategy
    • Governance, ethics, and risk management
    • Digital capacity and regulatory adaptability
  2. Data & Infrastructure
    • Computing performance and cost
    • Data availability, quality, and representativeness
  3. Demographics & Economy
    • Population structure and digital adoption
    • Workforce diversity and skills
  4. Technology Ecosystem
    • Investment and market size
    • Innovation capacity and R&D
    • Talent pool and education
    • AI labor market and competitiveness
    • Balance between domestic and foreign firms
  5. Business Performance
    • AI-driven revenue growth, productivity, and efficiency
    • Performance of AI-related companies
  6. Adoption & Usage
    • Enterprise and consumer adoption
    • Sectoral implementation (healthcare, finance, manufacturing, etc.)
    • AI tools, platforms, and applications in use
  7. Impact & Outcomes
    • Measurable benefits (cost savings, efficiency gains)
    • Social and economic impact
    • AI-related trends in media and digital platforms

The Role of COVID-19

The pandemic has accelerated AI adoption globally, particularly in:

  • Manufacturing
  • E-commerce
  • Healthcare
  • Education
  • Financial services

Vietnam can leverage this momentum to close the gap with regional leaders.

Building a Robust Measurement Framework

For the index to be effective:

  • Data must come from reliable public, private, and survey sources
  • Methodology must be transparent and replicable
  • Indicators should be standardized on a 0–100 scale
  • Weighting can evolve through research and validation

Such a framework would not only identify strengths and weaknesses, but also support forecasting models and inform policy decisions and investment strategies.

Conclusion

Vietnam’s AI ambitions are bold but not out of reach. Success will depend on:

  • Strategic execution
  • Continuous measurement and benchmarking
  • Investment in talent, infrastructure, and innovation

A structured approach like VAIDI could play a pivotal role in turning ambition into measurable progress.