American university professor points out Vietnam's great opportunity with AI to create life

Professor Tung Bui from the University of Hawaii said that Vietnamese businesses do not have much money to build AI machines, but can apply AI to increase competitive value.

"We probably can't afford to build machines like ChatGPT . OpenAI pays hundreds of thousands of dollars every day to run their models. We don't have that much money. But luckily there are many open source AI codes to take advantage of," said Professor Tung Bui of the Shidler College of Business, University of Hawaii, at an event on July 5 at Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City.

He believes that the great opportunity for Vietnamese enterprises in this era is to find a suitable AI model and apply it to their systems to increase competitive value and reduce operating costs. When it comes to generative AI - GenAI , there are three parts to note: User interaction interface; Machine learning model behind; Data for AI training.

"Without data, there is no AI. Data is the biggest competitive asset of Vietnamese businesses that OpenAI or international companies do not have," he said.

Professor Tung Bui at the event "Vietnam's Competitiveness in the AI ​​Era" on July 5 in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Van Lang University

Professor Tung said the shift in global supply chains is bringing many new opportunities to Vietnam. However, multinational companies are still concerned about the quality of production machinery and labor skills. If Vietnamese businesses can apply AI to limit weaknesses and increase strengths, multinational corporations will feel confident in choosing new bases.

From the business side, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong, Director of Revenue at FPT Automotive, said that it took the group 25 years to reach $1 billion in revenue from software exports. But with AI, the group may only need 2-3 years to reach the next billion-dollar milestone.

According to Ms. Duong, AI is "fascinating but scary", but if businesses boldly apply it and find the right formula, it will develop very quickly. She gave the example of the development of the Long Chau pharmacy chain.

"From the outside, Long Chau looks like a pharmaceutical company, but behind it is a dense team of technology engineers. We not only use AI to train employees but also apply technology in logistics, sales, and analysis of customer needs and behavior," she said.

Experts discuss AI potential at an event on July 5 in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Van Lang University

Meanwhile, Ms. Nguyen Thi Tra My, CEO of PAN, said that even traditional industries such as agriculture are not out of the trend. Artificial intelligence can promote automation, improve productivity and effectively manage resources. However, the application of AI in agriculture also faces challenges in terms of data, investment costs and labor. "If we know how to collect and organize data, AI can be trained based on farmers' knowledge and experience, helping to maintain and pass on traditional techniques to the next generation," Ms. My assessed.

According to her, this combination can create a sustainable and effective agricultural model suitable for Vietnam's actual conditions, not only helping to increase productivity and product quality but also protecting and developing natural resources and biodiversity.

Meanwhile, Professor Tung Bui noted that before applying technology, it is necessary to have a clear strategy, know what you have, what you need, and avoid depending on machines. He said that with AI, for the first time in history, humans can interact with computers in natural language, instead of through programming software, opening a big turning point for society. But AI also has weaknesses, in billions of information there is still wrong information. Users need to be alert when using it, as well as consider "AI ethics" when applying technology widely.