In 2024, Vietnam's digital economy saw a major uptick in interest in artificial intelligence (AI).

Vietnam can unlock the digital economy across sectors through the effective use of AI-powered solutions.

The growth of Vietnam's esports market is highlighted in the Vietnam Esports White Book 2022-2023, which outlines global trends.

The ninth National Conference o­n Nuclear Science and Technology opened in the central coastal province of Ninh Thuan. The two-day event is being jointly held by the Vietnam Atomic Energy Society, the Vietnam Atomic Energy Institute (VAEI) and the Ninh Thuan provincial Department of Science and Technology. Along with 250 scientists and 40 organisations at home, the event saw the participation of 20 scientists and managers from Russia , Japan , Bulgaria , Germany , France and the US , which have actively contributed to nuclear power development in Vietnam . The event aims to release and exchange outcomes of the research and application of nuclear science and technology in Vietnam during the 2009-2011 period while mapping out targets and orientations for the sector between now and 2013. It also offers a chance for domestic and foreign participants to discuss issues regarding the implementation of a nuclear power project in Ninh Thuan province, legal foundation for the building of a nuclear plant in Vietnam and a new research centre of the VAEI. VAEI Director Vuong Huu Tan said Vietnam has seen significant progresses in the research, development and application of atomic energy since the eighth national conference two years ago. He commented a number of projects, including the Ninh Thuan nuclear power project which was ratified by the National Assembly o­n October 25, 2009, a master plan o­n atomic energy application for peaceful purposes by 2020 and a master plan o­n the application of radiation in agriculture, industry and natural resources and environment. Basically, a number of important legal documents giving guidelines for the development of the atomic energy sector has been issued over the past two years, he said, adding that such documents have created a firm foundation for ministries, branches, localities and enterprises to invest in atomic energy to serve socio-economic development.

The experimental growing of genetically modified (GM) maize in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak has showed good results with higher yield, quality and anti-pest capacity than normal maize grown in the same conditions.

A delegation led by the deputy head of the Thai Public Relations Department (PRD) Ladavan Bua-Aim has arrived in Vietnam to attend the third meeting of the joint technical committee between the PRD and Radio the Voice of Vietnam (VOV) from August 8-10.

The Hanoitimes -   Since 18 months of its launch in Vietnam, the 3G or third generation telecom service has attracted approximately eight million subscribers nationwide, a spokesperson from the telecom department under the Ministry of Information and Communication claimed yesterday.   The ministry hosted a conference to review the 3G services offered by the telecom companies in Vietnam. The performances of various service providers was discussed including Viettel, VinaPhone, MobiFone, Hanoi Telecom and EVN Telecom that have all built over 30,000 base transceiver stations and have attracted eight million subscribers nationwide.

The Technology and Equipment Fair for the South-Central and Central Highland region (Techmart Quang Nam) opened in Tam Ky City, Quang Nam province.

Mobile service providers have developed eight million 3G subscribers in Vietnam, narrowing the digital gap between urban and rural areas.

The Hanoitimes - A spinning top invented by a Vietnamese robotic firm has become the country’s first toy to win World Guinness certificate for the longest mechanical running duration.

FBNC, a Vietnamese television channel that specializes in finance and business news, has has cooperated with the American satellite and cable television channel CNBC (Consumer News and Business Channel) to produce the program “Vietnam in Focus”.

Vietnam was estimated to have around 30.1 million Internet users by the end of June 2011, representing a year-on-year increase of 22.1 percent.According to the General Statistics Office (GSO), the number of Internet subscribers in the country reached 3.9 million by that time, up 16.8 percent compared to the same period last year.The GSO figures refuted a viewpoint that Vietnam is limiting the use of the Internet as said by a number of people o­n the Internet recently.The GSO also said that the country’s total net post and telecommunication revenues in the first six months of the year reached 67.2 trillion VND (3.27 billion USD), soaring 18.3 percent year-on-year.

Texas-based Privus Mobile, a provider of caller ID services and mobile apps for smart phones, has announced to be behind the world's first national rollout of mobile caller ID to Vietnam, according to RCR Wireless Austin.Privus said they has clinched a deal with Vietnamese digital media and communication companies, Media Hub and Smart Media, to make caller information available to 25 million of Vietnam's wireless users.The contract is expected to generate more than $21 million in revenue for Privus Mobile annually.Under the terms of the agreement, Media Hub and Smart Media will provide Privus Mobile with the caller names for both mobile and landline numbers within the country.This will allow Privus Mobile to apply data validation technology to deliver caller ID service to mobile users by matching numbers with names, regardless of whether or not the caller is in the recipient's contact list.Privus said that Vietnam already has complete 3G coverage and the country was listed by AdMob as o­ne of the 10 largest consumers of mobile Internet advertising data in the world. Nearly 80 percent of Vietnam's population uses a mobile phone, while o­nly o­ne-third uses landline phone services."Vietnam has shown incredible growth in its telecommunications infrastructure over the past few years, to the point that it's now introducing concepts and capabilities unlike any other country in the world, and we're excited to be a part of it," said Greg Smith, president of Privus Mobile."Vietnam's strong carrier system allows us to apply our technology across nearly every handset in the nation with unprecedented accuracy and effectiveness," he added.Privus also develops apps for the Android, BlackBerry, iOS, Symbian and Windows Mobile operating systems, providing caller ID information.

Vietnam’s military-run telecom firm Viettel and the Intel Company have jointly announced a special promotional program “Computers for Soldiers”, to show their appreciation of the armed forces and to encourage all military personnel to make full use of information technology, especially in remote areas and islands.

The DDoS attacks causing network paralysis and system crash appearing in the early June tend to taper off but the administrators of Vietnamese websites or even internet users are advised to be highly cautious of the new and serious attacks to potentially come about. 

The Hanoitmes - Ho Chi Minh City University of Natural Sciences (UNS) and IBM Vietnam o­n June 8 signed a Memorandum of Understanding o­n establishing a new technological centre in Ho Chi Minh City. 

The Hanoitmes - Several banks in HCMC are trialing the service of money transfer via automated teller machines (ATMs), and the service will be widely available at all banks between 2013 and 2015, said the central bank’s HCMC Branch. 

The Hanoitmes - State-owned telecom giant VNPT said it has submitted to the government a plan to divest its stake from o­ne of its mobile phone subsidiaries, Vinaphone or MobiFone, according to news website VnExpress.  

The Hanoitmes - The customs sector should expand the electronic customs procedures to facilitate import-export and commercial activities, a customs official has said. The expansion of electronic customs procedures should include special preferential businesses and the application of digital signatures in the exchange of electronic information, said Nguyen Tran Hieu, deputy head of the Department of Customs Information Technology and Statistics. By 2015 the sector will have received information o­n electronic customs clearance (e-Declaration), and basic information o­n declaring goods and relevant documents to gradually shift to clearing customs before the arrival of goods (e-Manifest). By then the sector will have managed and exchanged information o­n permits (e-Permit), electronic Certificate of Origin (e-C/O), electronic tax payment (e-Payment), and electronic office management (e-Office). The ultimate aim is to become a customs agency that can meet demand anywhere around the clock by 2020, he said. Customs officials by then will be able to do their job anytime and anywhere, while customs declarants can undertake and be provided with customs procedures whenever and wherever they want. It will also lay the foundation for implementing the national and ASEAN o­ne-stop shop mechanism, and international commitments to which Vietnam is a party, leading towards building a modern and professional customs agency, Hieu said. E-customs enables businesses to fulfil customs procedures right at their company's office via the internet, instead of at customs agency office. If the goods are classified in the green zone, then businesses can themselves print out customs clearance orders for delivery of goods at port. In cases where further information is needed in the declaration process, businesses will also receive immediate o­nline feedback from customs agencies and enter missing information o­n the computer. The e-customs procedures, thanks to the application of information technology, have reduced the clearance time for imports and exports to three-15 minutes in the green zone and to 10-60 minutes in the yellow zone. The General Department of Customs said that the introduction of e-customs procedures has considerably shortened the time to complete customs proceedings, and removed geographical and temporal distance. It has also increased transparency, facilitated trade and aimed to attain the highest level of public service provision as classified by the Ministry of Information and Communication. The General Department said that based o­n the success of applying e-customs o­n a trial basis in Hai Phong and HCM City since 2005, the service has been expanded to seven other major customs departments in Dong Nai, Binh Duong, Hanoi, Da Nang, Lang Son, Quang Ninh, and Ba Ria-Vung Tau. This year seven more customs departments will introduce the e-customs procedures, including Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Thua Thien Hue, Binh Dinh, Dac Lac, Tay Ninh, and Long An. Statistics showed that as of 2010, the department had introduced the electronic customs clearance software to 13 out of the total 33 provincial and municipal customs departments that include 70 divisions. To support businesses, the General Department of Customs has provided free customs clearance software and published the data standard for electronic documents connected with the electronic data processing system of the customs sector. The general department has also offered training courses to businesses. Cao Thi Kim Lan, director of Binh Dinh Seafood Export Joint-Stock Company, said her company plans to participate in a training course in e-customs procedures after receiving a request from the provincial customs department. "The company imports and exports a large volume of commodities every year, so applying e-customs will surely further facilitate the business operations of the company," she said. Early this year, the General Department of Customs in co-ordination with commercial banks piloted the collection of import-export taxes electronically. The joint efforts aim to increase the automation level in carrying out e-customs procedures and to limit the use of cash for payments, a major plan of the Government. The general department plans to expand the service to eight major customs department by the year-end, targeting to have 80 percent of import-export revenue declaration and payments of taxes done o­nline. It intends this year to electronically receive and process information o­n commodities and means of transport prior to reaching ports. The deputy general director of the general department, Vu Ngoc Anh, said the Customs Development Strategy until 2020 recently approved by the Prime Minister envisages the customs sector striving to have 100 percent of customs departments and divisions in such crucial areas as seaports, airports, bordergates and key economic zones working o­nline. The strategy also strives to have 60 percent of basic customs services, 70 percent of import-export revenue, and 60 percent of businesses applying e-customs procedures. By 2020, the percentage will have been raised to 100 percent, 90 percent and 80 percent, respectively.

The Hanoitmes - Viettel's Internet Data Centre (IDC) has opened its third data centre - the biggest and most modern o­ne in Southeast Asia - in the southern province of Binh Duong.  

The Hanoitmes - Optimising technology infrastructure and diversifying banking services are the focus of the two-day Banking Vietnam Conference 2011. 

The Hanoitmes - Seven seaports will experimentally apply electronic customs declarations as of June 9 under a new decision by the Prime Minister. 

The Hanoitmes - Representatives from Canal France International (CFI), Fracne 24, Tv25 and Radio France International (RFI) and Shanghai media group (SMG) are keen to cooperate with VOV.