Vietnam and the US strengthen cooperation in the semiconductor and AI sectors

During his working visit to the US from June 22 - 26,  Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung co-chaired the first Vietnam-US Economic Dialogue and had separate meetings with many US officials, business leaders and expers. 

At a meeting with Dr. Richard Lawton Thurston, former Senior Vice President of the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Ltd., (TSMC), one of the leading non-engineer semiconductor experts in the US, who has supported many companies and governments in establishing and managing technology zones worldwide,  Minister Nguyen Chi Dung stated that since Vietnam and the US upgraded their comprehensive strategic partnership, both countries have actively promoted diplomatic activities and cooperation in many fields, including science and technology and innovation.

According to the minister, the US agreed to support Vietnam in training and enhancing capabilities in the semiconductor sector, and help Vietnam join the global value chain. These are also the two fields where Vietnam aims to focus on building a high-quality workforce to meet future demands while enhancing long-term research and development capabilities.

Dr. Thurston, for his part, noted that Vietnam has a significant opportunity to develop its semiconductor and AI sectors, especially with its abundant, well-trained young workforce. He added that AI technology requires various technologies such as sensors, memory, data collection, and processing. Therefore, Vietnam can choose one of these stages to focus on developing and building its strategy, he recommended.

Minister Dung informed Dr. Dr. Thurston the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) has submitted to the Prime Minister the project “Human resource development in semiconductor industry by 2030, with a vision to 2045”, with a focus on in-depth training for 1,300 lecturers and 50,000 engineers in the semiconductor industry, and establishment of 4 national-level shared semiconductor laboratories and 18 standard semiconductor laboratories, and explained the advantages for the development of semiconductor industry in Vietnam is currently evaluated to have three advantages.

The Minister therefore asked Dr. Thurston to share his experiences and practical insights into the development of the semiconductor industry as well as  his recommendations for developing the semiconductor industry, particularly in developing human resources, and  promoting investment and mobilizing resources for the development of semiconductors in Vietnam.

Minister Nguyen Chi Dung also requested Dr. Thurston to encourage TSMC to invest in Vietnam and invited him to be an advisor to Vietnam in the semiconductor industry.

Dr. Thurston confirmed his pledge to consider Minister Nguyen Chi Dung’s proposals and accepted the invitation to be an advisor to Vietnam in building the plan and roadmap for developing its semiconductor industry.

During the meeting with Ms. Kathryn Neal, Director of International Policy at Microsoft Corporation, Minister Nguyen Chi Dung affirmed that the Vietnamese government highly values and fully supports Microsoft’s business investments in Vietnam and suggested that Microsoft soon send a delegation of senior leaders to Vietnam to explore, survey, and discuss with Vietnamese counterparts about opportunities for investing in a research and development center, and initiating cooperation programs for training, incubation, and AI application research in Vietnam.

Ms. Kathryn informed Minister Dung and his delegation about many ongoing and upcoming activities in Vietnam.

During his stay in the US, Minister Nguyen Chi Dung also had a working meeting with leaders of Super Micro Computer, Inc., a leading global manufacturer of server components for developing data centers, cloud infrastructure, artificial intelligence, and 5G, with a market capitalization of up to $51 billion.

Minister Nguyen Chi Dung  suggested that Supermicro collaborate with the government and Vietnamese enterprises in developing data centers, cloud infrastructure, AI, and 5G. Vietnam currently has a significant demand for developing data centers, cloud, and AI, and 5G technologies, he said.

The Minister also proposed that Supermicro  soon research and survey to establish a research and development center in Vietnam; and to open its representative offices and R&D centers at Vietnam's National Innovation Center (NIC) to enhance business activities, research cooperation, and  introduction of new technologies.

Through the meeting, the Chairman and Founders of Super Micro Computer expressed their interest and appreciation for the potential and business investment opportunities in Vietnam and committed to soon researching and surveying the possibility of investment in Vietnam in the near future.