VINIF Foundation - The "midwife" of Vietnamese science

Qualitative change for translational research (R&D)

In early 2023, Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Tan Hung (University of Danang) received great news when the project "Smart optical information for extremely large data networks" of which he is the Head was granted a patent by the USPTO (United States Intellectual Property Office). Immediately, he and his research team began developing the commercial product "smart optical transceiver" from this invention.

*Signing ceremony of sponsorship agreement between VINIF Foundation and science and technology project*

Associate Professor Hung described this result as “beyond expectations”. He said that instead of conducting “safe” research that only required output products as committed to be presented, his team accepted high risks and conducted research with greater impact, which is true to the content of innovative research activities.

In particular, because of the goal of commercializing research, he and his colleagues first approached the process of registering international patents. For most Vietnamese scientists, this is an arduous process, requiring the participation of a law firm specializing in intellectual property, and at the same time requiring a large amount of funding. Fortunately, the barriers were removed when the Project received funding from the VINIF Fund.

“While other funding programs are increasingly strict in regulations and procedures, VINIF creates maximum conditions for us to promote our research and innovation capabilities,” Associate Professor Hung shared.

Also supported by the VINIF Fund, Prof. Dr. Nguyen Xuan Hung (Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology) could not hide his happiness when the project "3D printing technology on deep learning platform" of which he is the Head was granted 3 patents in the US and 1 domestic patent. Prof. Hung said that receiving international patents as well as bringing research from the laboratory into practice is the desire of all scientists. However, that path is often very arduous.

“With funding from VINIF, the project has the opportunity to connect with businesses to commercialize products. I hope that VINIF will always accompany and support scientists long-term to implement innovative ideas, contributing to the development of the country,” Prof. Hung expected.

According to official statistics, in the world, the rate of converting inventions into products on the market is 2-5%. Meanwhile, in Vietnam, the rate of projects and research topics from universities and research institutes successfully commercialized is only about 1%.

In that context, VINIF, established by Vingroup in 2018, was born with many innovative and breakthrough funding programs. Research projects are not only financially funded by VINIF, but also supported with legal procedures for international patent registration. VINIF also opens up opportunities for researchers to access modern equipment sources and specialized materials to best serve scientific activities.

*Prof. Vu Ha Van - Scientific Director of VINIF Foundation shared at the Announcement Ceremony of VINIF's 2023 funding programs in Hanoi*

Prof. Vu Ha Van, Scientific Director of VINIF, said: “Many scientists have good ideas, but to turn them into products that are accepted by users requires many things, from capital to the dynamism of the author. When scientists ensure that the product has great potential, VINIF will be ready to support.”

Launch pad to bring Vietnamese science to international level

As a non-profit program of Vingroup Corporation, aiming to change the research environment and contribute to creating a launching pad for Vietnamese science to reach international standards, VINIF has become a reliable support for many agencies, training and research facilities across the country. After 5 years, the total value of the Fund for Science and Technology in Vietnam has reached 800 billion VND. Notably, 21% of the projects have successfully commercialized products, generating hundreds of billions of VND in revenue each year.

*Representatives of leaders of ministries, universities, research institutes, science funds, projects, scientists and experts at the Announcement Ceremony*

In 2023 alone, the Fund sponsored 24 scientific research projects and preserved historical and cultural values, 300 master's and doctoral scholarships, 90 post-doctoral scholarships, 6 cooperation projects for master's training in data science and artificial intelligence, 60 seminars, conferences, and public lectures.

Many products currently on the market, related to the fields of industry, technology, agriculture, pharmaceuticals... are the "sweet fruits" of science and technology projects funded by VINIF, such as: Industrial robots of VIETMANI, active ingredients from herbs and pharmaceutical cosmetics of AOTA International Joint Stock Company, highly active biological products for agriculture and aquaculture from the AgriBiosol project of Midoli Company Limited, technology, automatic welding systems of Dreamweldtech Company...

*Deputy Minister Tran Hong Thai - Ministry of Science and Technology, speaking at the announcement ceremony on January 16, 2024*

Speaking at the Announcement Ceremony of VINIF's 2023 Funding Programs, which took place on January 16, 2024, Prof. Dr. Tran Hong Thai, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology, assessed that the impressive results achieved by VINIF are very consistent with the orientation of Vietnam's science and technology development. With VINIF's valuable contributions to raising the status of Vietnamese science, the leaders of the Ministry of Science and Technology said that the Fund has fulfilled its mission very well.

“We strongly support and believe that perhaps VINIF’s fund mechanism is a truly breakthrough socialization direction, overcoming the barriers that some public units are facing. VINIF’s products have entered life, bringing great value,” Deputy Minister Tran Hong Thai assessed.

In the context of limited investment resources for science, technology and innovation, and mechanisms and policies in the process of being perfected, the establishment and development of VINIF has breathed new life into the scientific environment with great potential in Vietnam.

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