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NVIDIA proposes AI cooperation with Vietnam, including national LLM and GPU expansion

By: IDCNOVARegion: Southeast Asia
NVIDIA has proposed a four-part AI cooperation framework to Vietnam, ranging from helping the country develop its own large language model to expanding national computing capacity, according to Vikram Rao, NVIDIA’s vice-president for ASEAN. The proposals were discussed during a meeting between Rao and Vietnamese Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan, as confirmed in a ministerial statement released on Thursday.

Vietnam has been steadily building its AI ecosystem, and NVIDIA has already engaged with local enterprises including FPT, Viettel, and GreenNode on AI infrastructure projects. The new proposals aim to deepen that collaboration and position Vietnam as a more self-reliant AI player in Southeast Asia, a region where several governments are racing to establish sovereign AI capabilities.

Under the first proposal, NVIDIA would support Vietnam in developing a locally owned LLM, leveraging NVIDIA's open-source models such as its Nemotron family, along with associated tools and data, tailored to Vietnam's specific linguistic and economic needs. This reflects a broader trend of countries seeking greater control over their AI models to ensure data sovereignty and cultural alignment.

On infrastructure, NVIDIA noted that Vietnam currently operates an estimated 10,000 to 15,000 GPUs, a figure significantly lower than South Korea's 50,000 to 60,000, with Seoul planning to expand to 200,000 to 250,000 units over the next five years. NVIDIA suggested that Vietnam develop a national roadmap to build AI computing capacity for government agencies, businesses, universities, and research institutions, aiming to close the gap with regional peers.

The third proposal focuses on talent development and innovation, including scaling NVIDIA's Deep Learning Institute training programs across Vietnam and providing support for local AI startups, researchers, and students. The fourth area of collaboration would connect Vietnam's AI sector to global markets, initially within Southeast Asia before expanding internationally.

Minister Quan welcomed the initiatives and instructed ministry units to work closely with NVIDIA to develop detailed joint action plans. The proposals come as Hanoi moves to strengthen its position in the regional AI landscape, with NVIDIA also aiming to turn its R&D center in the capital into a world-class AI engineering hub.