Minister of Science and Technology Vũ Hải Quân comments on the draft proposal for the national strategy on attracting talent in strategic sectors. — VGP/VNA Photo

HÀ NỘI — The Ministry of Science and Technology (MoST) has founded a new network for professionals who work in the artificial intelligence (AI) sector, called the Việt Nam Global AI Experts Network.

The network aims to connect Vietnamese scientists, experts, administrators and entrepreneurs and Vietnamese people abroad who have qualifications and experience in AI research, development, application, governance, commercialisation and policy-making.

According to the MoST, the general objective is to form a community of highly qualified experts in AI, who are capable of mobilising knowledge at home and abroad, directly serving science, technology and innovation activities linked to practical problems in Việt Nam.

The network will involve research, development, technology application and training of skilled workers, helping to improve the nation's technological capacity.

Another aim is to support the formation of AI models, platforms and products of strategic significance in priority fields, such as healthcare, education, smart cities, cybersecurity and national databases.

The network will operate on the principles of openness and flexibility, ensuring the ability to connect experts and organisations widely, both at home and abroad.

Its activities will involve coming up with solutions for practical problems in Việt Nam and for localities and enterprises; encouraging application-oriented directions; and creating socio-economic value. At the same time, it will connect diverse resources at home and abroad, promoting international cooperation and public-private collaboration, ensuring sustainability and efficiency.

The National Foundation for Science and Technology Development has been assigned to build and operate the digital platform and expert database, which will receive consultancy, research, development and AI application needs from State agencies, organisations and enterprises and connect them with suitable experts.

This opens up a different approach to mobilising high-quality resources, as experts do not necessarily have to return to Việt Nam to be able to contribute to the country. Vietnamese experts in countries around the world can participate in tasks and projects through the network.

Connecting global experts

Minister of Science and Technology Vũ Hải Quân emphasised the network's novel approach in comments on the Draft National Strategy on attracting talent in strategic sectors for rapid and sustainable development.

According to the minister, clear answers are needed on why several recent policies aimed at attracting talent have not achieved expected results.

Quân said that initiative should be given to organisations that train and attract talent themselves, such as universities, research institutes and enterprises.

The State should focus on the role of building support mechanisms, rather than recruiting for others.

Việt Nam National University HCM City's VNU 350 Programme has attracted nearly 100 PhDs from abroad, as well as nearly 100 visiting professors.

The minister said that what brings scientists back was not just a high salary, but more importantly, the right environment for them to develop, with good students, well-equipped laboratories, quality projects and talented colleagues.

The issue was not only attracting talent, but also creating space for workers to create value.

Quân said that people were the decisive factor for the success of science, technology and innovation.

With this in mind, the MoST would gradually carry out a number of pilot solutions. The global AI network was just the first step in that process, he added.

He said that the new network was seen as a pilot model to attract and connect experts and scientists at home, Vietnamese people abroad and even international experts, with a focus on AI.

If effective, the network would create an additional channel for connecting AI experts and help change the approach to the talent problem. Instead of trying to bring talented people back to work in Việt Nam, it would build a mechanism for Vietnamese experts around the world to participate in the country’s development process.

This approach was also in line with the need to develop science, technology and innovation in the new era, when intellectual resources are no longer limited by geographical boundaries. — VNS