In his opening remarks, Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee Nguyễn Văn Được emphasized that this year’s HEF aims to inspire the young generation and clarify their role in the “dual transition” – both digital transformation and green transition for sustainable development. The city expects that through the dialogues, the perspectives of young people, experts and businesses will help shape policies on digital human resources, especially in the field of artificial intelligence (AI).

Chang Lih Kang, Malaysia’s Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, shares his views at the “Intelligent Generation NOW – The Intelligent Generation of Today” dialogue held within the framework of the HEF 2025 Autumn Economic Forum.

Voices from WEF, UNESCO and Young Faces

Stephan Mergenthaler – Managing Director of the World Economic Forum (WEF) – said the world is entering a period in which AI, the green economy and deep tech influence every decision made by governments and businesses. He called on young Vietnamese not to stop at the role of “technology users”, but to become a creative force participating in shaping future policies and products.

The youth exchange session was moderated by Jonathan Wallace Baker, Head of Office and UNESCO Representative to Vietnam, with the participation of many outstanding young faces: startup founders, social activists, students and young scientists. Stories of tech entrepreneurship and the use of AI in education, healthcare and the environment showed a generation that is confident in integration, but also faces the pressure to pursue lifelong learning and constantly update new skills.

On behalf of the Government of Vietnam, Deputy Prime Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn stressed that young people are at the center of the country’s strategy for developing the digital economy and knowledge economy. Participation in global platforms such as WEF, UNESCO and the United Nations is an opportunity for young Vietnamese “to grow up together with the world” rather than having to follow behind.

CMC’s CTO: A National AI Competency Framework and Open Infrastructure for Everyone

In his inspirational talk on “AI for Everyone and the Role of Young People in Leading the Transformation”, Đặng Văn Tú, Senior Vice President/Vice Chairman and Chief Technology Officer (CTO) of CMC Technology Group, said that young Vietnamese are standing before an “unprecedented opportunity” to break through in AI. However, gaps in skills and infrastructure remain major challenges.

SVP/CTO Đặng Văn Tú delivers an inspirational talk on the topic “AI for Everyone and the Role of Young People in Leading the Transformation”.

From the perspective of a technology enterprise, CMC’s CTO proposed four groups of policies and cooperation models to expand Vietnam’s AI talent pool at the national level:

First, building a National AI Skills Competency Framework.
This framework should clearly describe the sets of competencies that students, engineers, civil servants and experts must achieve at each level. With a common standard, universities, training institutions and businesses can design programs that “fit together”, enabling AI training and skills development to be deployed quickly and consistently nationwide.

Second, innovating university–enterprise cooperation models.
According to Mr. Tú, universities often update theory quickly, while businesses possess real data, real infrastructure and real-world problems. An effective model is “co-teaching”: universities provide the foundation, while enterprises bring AI labs, datasets, real projects and career pathways into the classroom. CMC is implementing this model with CMC University and several partners, but it needs to be scaled up at the national level.

Third, investing in open AI infrastructure for training and experimentation.
“AI skills cannot develop if young people do not have access to GPUs, data, sandboxes and open AI platforms where they can build agents, models and applications,” Mr. Tú stressed. He said platforms like C-OpenAI and CMC’s AI-X strategy are designed to provide tools, model APIs and AI-as-a-Service offerings for millions of Vietnamese users, especially students, startups and small businesses.

Fourth, strengthening global cooperation in AI training and research.
CMC’s CTO proposed that Vietnam step up cooperation with leading technology corporations and research labs to jointly train LLM engineers, AI safety specialists and teams capable of building AI governance frameworks. In his words, “we cannot talk about digital sovereignty and AI sovereignty if we do not have Vietnamese teams capable of mastering the systems and the rules of the game.”

“These four pillars do not only help Vietnam have more engineers; more importantly, they help shape a generation of talent capable of designing and leading AI solutions for the entire region,” Mr. Tú said.

Digital Talent Policies: Vietnam Is Not Just an ‘AI User’

In the panel “Policies for Developing Talent in the Digital Era”, Đặng Văn Tú together with representatives from UNESCO, international universities and Vietnamese businesses discussed in depth how to build a high-quality workforce.

SVP/CTO Đặng Văn Tú speaks at the panel on “Policies for Developing Talent in the Digital Era”.

Here, CMC’s CTO underscored the importance of Vietnam proactively engaging with global frameworks such as the Global Digital Compact and UNESCO’s Recommendation on the Ethics of AI. According to him, this is crucial in three respects:

• Building international trust: The world wants AI to be safe, inclusive, transparent and human-centered. When Vietnam aligns with these standards, it sends a message that the country develops and applies AI responsibly.
• Creating a basis for cross-border cooperation: Common standards make it easier for Vietnam’s digital platforms, services and data practices to connect with partners in ASEAN, Europe and other regions, thereby enabling Vietnamese tech enterprises to export AI services.
• Shaping Vietnam’s strategic identity in the AI era: Instead of being seen only as a market of technology users, Vietnam can emerge as a contributor that develops AI models for Vietnamese and other emerging markets, helping to ensure AI safety and promote global digital inclusion.

He noted that CMC’s AI-X strategy is designed with an “ethical-by-design” approach – integrating ethical principles right from the product design stage: from data protection and risk governance to the safe deployment of large language models (LLMs) in enterprises and public services. The goal is for AI “not only to be a technology for a small group of engineers, but to become a safe and useful tool for every citizen and organization in Vietnam”.

At the end of the panel, the message “AI Generation NOW – Acting from Today” was once again highlighted: if the right policy frameworks, open infrastructure and the companionship of pioneering partners like CMC are in place, the young generation of Vietnam can not only keep pace with the world, but also help write the “new rules of the game” for the AI era.