Professor Nazli Choucri, Professor of MIT and Board of Director’s member of The Michael Dukakis Institute for Leadership and Innovation (MDI), delivered a speech on AI strategy for Vietnam on ThoiDaiAi.net – an AI information portal in Vietnam.
“This is the time to think seriously about the leapfrogging, the leapfrogging technology leapfrogging strategy in the area of AI.
AI is the future already here, it is the future now. And a leapfrogging strategy for the future means a strategy to place Vietnam at the forefront of its peer countries maybe of the world as the whole in the area of AI. AI for particular applications and AI for government and AI for governance, AI for capturing the value added that the country’s population is producing, is creating and the like. Vietnam is very fortunate in having a very disciplined labor force and labor force may well be ready to be motivated, to be given incentives, to be given a global challenge. And the challenge is to put Vietnam at the forefront of the world capability on AI.
This is not impossible, this is very well within the acceptable possibility at this point but it requires commitment, it requires a continuity, it requires developing incentives and rewards for those that are committed and those would really work hard on the leapfrogging strategy in AI. We know that they need to be appreciate, rewarded. Here is the case where rewarding them would help the nation as the whole. __ has done some statistical work comparing where Vietnam stands in the labour, in the capability on the technology side and on the human capacity size in the cyber domain… just cyber related capability. Vietnam ranks among the 20 top countries in the world, not the first, not the second, but in the group, which means the foundation are there and they have to be accelerated. The challenge is to appreciate that most people think that AI is science-fiction, it is really not science- fiction. It’s day-to-day in advancing industrial countries, there is no reason why Vietnam could not have its own existed skill-base enhanced.
You don’t need a miracle, what you need is simply a strategy, a strategy that is anchor in people, in the support, and the facilities that people can have, and the reward. I am a great believer in rewarding good performance and making it known that you are appreciated, etc. Many areas where Vietnam push its capability on AI could have enormous benefits that are not understood and appreciated. Look at what we are saying now, we are saying it needs investment in human, investment in the willingness and desire of individuals to participate in the strategy to develop those capabilities. We are not asking the students or the young people to put a man on the moon. It is quite a contrary asking to have poor technology that is used to put people on the moon so to speak. In the old days, to __ us for purposes of national well-being, it is a 21st century vision, the developments of the past centuries were fine because it created strategies for hardware developed, bridges, buildings, roads, etc. But it neglected the brain, and the capability provided by cyberspace, access to cyberspace.
I would suggest, I do wish, they wish to be known as a Prime Minister who put Vietnam on AI map, put Vietnam in the path of global leadership in particular area and I am convinced that it can be done.
Thank you.”
