Foreign investment attraction is one of the highlights of the Vietnamese economy in the year 2023 when the world witnessed many difficulties. The arrival of technology corporations to Vietnam to explore opportunities promises a new development.

Vietnam has great potential

Billionaire Jensen Huang, Chairman and CEO of Nvidia Corporation (USA), recently visited Vietnam to discuss collaboration in developing the semiconductor industry. Appearing modest as usual, clad in a black leather jacket, the 34th richest person in the world walked into a lunch with Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung and representatives of many leading technology enterprises in Vietnam on December 11, 2023.

He excitedly shared about the meeting with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh the previous day and expressed his good impressions of Vietnam. Mr. Jensen Huang promised to establish a legal entity in Vietnam, hoping that Vietnam would become Nvidia’s second homeland.

This event cannot help but remind people of nearly 18 years ago, in April 2006, Microsoft Corporation Chairman Bill Gates visited Vietnam. Being the richest person in the world with a net worth of US$50 billion according to Forbes’ Billionaires Index at that time, Mr. Bill Gates is expected to lead Microsoft to follow Intel’s footsteps, investing in the field of information technology in the Southeast Asian nation, one of Asia’s largest untapped markets, as commented by many economic analysts.

Microsoft then invested in a more-than-$300 million factory in Bac Ninh, through the acquisition of Nokia’s factory for its significant business expansion activities in Vietnam. The Chairman of Nvidia Group, billionaire Jensen Huang, also supposed a new wave of AI is an extraordinary opportunity for Vietnam during a meeting with Minister Nguyen Chi Dung.

Moreover, Vietnam and the US officially established a comprehensive strategic partnership during the visit of US President Joe Biden to Vietnam in September 2023. The two leaders issued a joint statement emphasizing a key area of cooperation in the coming time is innovation and high technology, including semiconductor chips and artificial intelligence.

Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh a few days later made a trip to the US to attend the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week. On this occasion, many cooperation agreements were signed between partners of both sides, and most of them are big names in the technology field.

Additionally, in mid-June 2023, a delegation of more than 200 large Korean businesses went with Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol to Vietnam, many of the Korean businesses in the delegation were technology billionaires.

Vietnam makes concerted efforts to attract foreign investment

After 35 years after the implementation of the Foreign Investment Law, Vietnam has become a successful example globally in attracting foreign investment. Plus, the country now has the opportunity to welcome high-quality capital flows in the field of Industry 4.0. During a working session with the Chairman of Nvidia Group, Minister Nguyen Chi Dung affirmed that Vietnam has all the necessary conditions and factors to develop the semiconductor industry as the country has a stable political system and favorable geographical location, abundant workforce in the field of engineering and technology suitable for the semiconductor industry. Vietnam has been attracting more and more large corporations in the semiconductor industry from the United States, Korea, and Taiwan (China).

Many attractive investment incentive mechanisms for companies and corporations in the semiconductor industry have been designed and are being completed. Specifically, Vietnam has established the National Innovation Center (NIC) and three high-tech parks in big cities Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang which are ready to welcome investors in the semiconductor industry with highly preferential mechanisms. In particular, the National Assembly has recently issued a resolution allowing the Government to develop a decree to establish an investment support fund for a number of high-tech projects, including semiconductor and artificial intelligence projects. This Decree is expected to be issued in mid-2024.

However, some investors also pointed out that Vietnam’s slow administrative reforms and formality-related issues are the country’s weaknesses.

Mr. Jensen Huang commented that Vietnam needs to build a specialized infrastructure system, including supercomputers to develop artificial intelligence in addition to good existing infrastructure.

Equally important, although Vietnam already has a strong team of software engineers with knowledge and skills, it is in great need of in-depth training and creative resonance in the technological ecosystem. These are challenging goals and difficult to achieve without outstanding efforts from management agencies, the education and training system and the business community as well as the cooperation from technology giant corporations.

SGGP News