Our conversation with Dr. Dao Duc Minh, General Director of VinBigdata Company (under Vingroup Corporation) had to be rescheduled twice because of his busy work schedule at the end of the year. After 11am, Dr. Dao Duc Minh appeared in his office and told us with concern that after this interview, he had another appointment...
With the elegant demeanor of a young leader who has worked abroad for many years, and with the inherent composure of a scientist and researcher, Dr. Dao Duc Minh shared with Dan Viet reporters about the first days of returning to Vietnam, becoming a key leader in VinBigdata.
Throughout the story, he rarely (and even did not want to) talk about himself, but mainly focused on the rapid development of technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, which is affecting all economic and social fields in Vietnam, and the desire to contribute.
Because according to him, "only we can understand the characteristics of Vietnamese data, the needs and characteristics of Vietnamese people. Therefore, mastering Vietnamese data will be the key to maintaining core technology."
00:05:36
We just talked about "returning". And as we know, you graduated with a double master's degree from two famous technology universities in Italy and Germany, then got your doctorate in the US. Why did you decide to return to Vietnam when you have lived abroad for many years and are working for an artificial intelligence organization in the US, participating in many large projects of the US Government?
- The story of VinBigdata from the early days is the story of those who returned, starting with Professor Vu Ha Van. Previously, I worked abroad for many years, more than 10 years in the US, I returned to Vietnam after Professor Vu Ha Van started to establish VinBigdata. Not only Professor Vu Ha Van and I, in VinBigdata, many key personnel are also experts, PhDs who have studied at MIT, Johns Hopkins University, University of Chicago or leading companies such as Microsoft, Amazon...
I think not only Professor Vu Ha Van and I, but also the staff in VinBigdata - who come from all over the world when deciding to return to Vietnam - all have a common aspiration to contribute, to use Vietnamese hands and minds to master Vietnamese data, thereby creating purely Vietnamese products and solutions, to serve and contribute to improving the quality of life of Vietnamese people. Even more than that, we also want to bring Vietnamese technology to catch up with the world, to raise its position in the international arena.
At Vingroup, we have the opportunity to develop and solve meaningful problems. Of course, there are also many challenges and great pressure, but the important thing is how we take advantage of those opportunities. Vingroup gives us thousands of big problems, some of which I have shared with my colleagues that only here, at this time, can we solve such problems.
Dr. Dao Duc Minh talks with reporters of Dan Viet electronic newspaper.
You just mentioned being given the opportunity, but along with that certainly comes great responsibility, great pressure from the expectations of the group's leaders. So as the General Director of a unit that is on the path to being expected, how do you face that pressure?
- Talking about pressure, responsibility and great expectations, it certainly exists, but how we accept that pressure is the key point. If we consider it an opportunity, a challenge to do big things, to solve big problems, it will have a more positive meaning, pushing us to the limit to do that. If we think of it as pressure, it will be heavier.
At VinBigdata, we look at it from the perspective of being given opportunities, although challenging, the opportunities are very clear, there are goals and that is what many of my colleagues want to aim for: Solving meaningful problems for the community.
Here I set limits but that doesn't mean the limits are too far away. I will have a plan to do it.
We are talking a lot about Vietnam entering a new era – an era of national growth. How do you evaluate the role of technology in the country’s new era?
- Technology plays a key role and is an indispensable driving force. The rapid development of technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Big Data, Internet of Things (IoT) not only affects all economic and social fields but is also an important factor in improving the country's competitiveness.
In the public sector, technology can help fundamentally and comprehensively innovate public sector management and operations, contributing to building a smart digital government.
For the private sector, technology can help change the way things are operated and managed, thereby increasing labor efficiency, reducing production costs, increasing productivity and product value, expanding markets, and improving competitiveness.
On the social side, technology contributes to improving people's lives, building a civilized and modern society, where people can easily access information, educational and medical services, becoming a bridge between people and state organizations...
When we say Vietnam is entering a new era, it means marking a qualitative change, and in the past, we did not define a new era. But the current reality requires fields and industries to have a breakthrough to create fundamental qualitative changes, so what qualitative changes has VinBigdata made to meet this growing era?
- VinBigdata was established 6 years ago, of which the first 3 years were as a Research Institute in Vingroup's ecosystem, with basic research activities oriented towards application in the fields of artificial intelligence (AI) and big data. In 2021, VinBigdata Joint Stock Company was officially established and began commercializing products to the market.
Starting out as a research institute, VinBigdata itself has had a solid foundation for developing AI applications based on Big Data since its inception. We have a unified strategy for data development, and from the very first days have collected and processed large data sources, especially data sources specific to Vietnamese people. We are proud to own the largest database system in Vietnam, up to 3,500 Terabytes in many different fields, including data on Vietnamese voices, genomes, human images, medical images, etc.
Second, we clearly defined our goal from the beginning, which is to develop and master pure Vietnamese core technology, not depending on any technology in the world. This brings certain advantages, making it easy to customize technology to solve diverse business problems in the most appropriate and optimal way. That said, VinBigdata's path has been very methodical from the beginning.
VinBigdata has strengths in solutions and technology, so where does VinBigdata stand in the current science and technology industry of the country? And in your opinion, how can we create competitive products in the context of increasingly developing technology, while VinBigdata is only a company that was established a few years ago?
- As a purely Vietnamese company, this is a difference and a "competitive advantage" of VinBigdata compared to other companies in the world. With the mission of "Vietnamese technology - For the future of Vietnam", we focus on the advantages of understanding language and locality, the advantages of collecting data specific to Vietnamese people, from which we develop practical applications to improve the lives of Vietnamese people.
Second, we have an advantage in data because we have determined from the beginning that data is the foundation for developing AI applications. Since our inception, we have invested and focused on collecting and processing data in many fields, and currently own the largest database system of Vietnamese people.
Third, we determined from the beginning to develop and master pure Vietnamese core technology instead of using foreign technology. This brings a great competitive advantage when helping to implement practical problems at the most suitable cost, moreover, it is the issue of ensuring information security.
Another point is that we always seek to cooperate with the world's leading units to be able to take advantage, we are not behind, always go together in terms of technology, can take advantage of our other competitive advantages to develop more purely Vietnamese technology.
What about VinBigdata makes you think that the ambition of becoming the No. 1 artificial intelligence and big data company in Vietnam, top 10 in the region, world-class will become a reality?
- Over the past 6 years, VinBigdata has been persistent and tenacious in pursuing the mission set out from the early days of its establishment. The dreams and ambitions we set are big, but at the same time, they also go hand in hand with the desire to research and develop products and solutions that can improve the quality of Vietnamese life, contributing a small part to the overall development of the country.
More specifically, it is developing technology products owned by Vietnamese people, in Vietnam, with quality equivalent to international products. VinBigdata has achieved some remarkable achievements such as being in the world's Top 10 in the latest Facial Recognition Technology Assessment Ranking announced by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), developing ViGPT - the first "Vietnamese version of ChatGPT" for end users, along with AI application products such as ViVi Virtual Assistant, VinBase Platform, Vizone Solution Suite, ViFi Solution Suite.
The whole country is focusing all its efforts on the national digital transformation revolution, ready to make a breakthrough. The government has also been creating a favorable environment, enabling businesses like VinBigdata to develop.
And another point is the basis for our hope, that is we have complete opportunities in the technology sector as expected, which is the strategy and goals that the Government is setting and has policies to promote. Currently, both the Government and the people support these new technologies.
ViGPT was introduced to the public exactly 1 year ago. What can you say about this product now? Besides ViGPT, which other intellectual products of VinBigdata have been evaluated and recognized by the scientific and technological community?
- Up to now, ViGPT is still a source of pride for VinBigdata, representing the will, desire, and spirit of mastering the most advanced technologies in the world of a group of Vietnamese people. The rapid 9-month research and development process of ViGPT by VinBigdata is also a testament to the timeliness in capturing new trends in the world; the relentless efforts to create products and solutions to serve Vietnamese people and the capacity of Vietnamese people is not inferior to any country.
Currently, with the Vietnamese language model ViGPT, VinBigdata has applied and developed various solutions, applied and deployed for government agencies as well as private enterprises in many fields including banking, insurance, hotels, tourism, aviation, etc., contributing to promoting comprehensive digital transformation.
VinBigdata also has a number of products certified by NIST for anti-spoofing voice, Top 10 world facial recognition solutions according to NIST assessment, iBeta Certificate for anti-spoofing face, FDA Certification in the category of mammogram analysis...
We often see the successes but not the failures behind. Have you ever failed and how did you deal with it?
- Of course there will be products that are too challenging and failure is normal. We don't think that doing everything will be successful, so at VinBigdata there is a culture of daring to try, daring to fail, a culture of trial and error. The more you try and make mistakes, the more experience you will gain.
We have projects that do not meet initial expectations, but we believe that we can draw a lot of experience and accumulate knowledge to help perfect other products.
VinBigdata's role is both to research and to launch products on the market, which means there is a combination of pure scientists and business people. So how do you maintain harmony between these two roles, avoid risks, and what experiences have you learned in the process?
- Right from the beginning, we followed that strategy, which means setting the goal of developing technology and commercializing products. So that transformation is not outside the original strategy, but the transition phase also has changes.
In the past 3 years, when we transitioned to the stage of being an independent company and developing the business, one of the things we did the most was to change our mindset so that everyone would focus more on customers, making products according to customers' needs and desires rather than making products according to what we could do.
We all consider it something new to learn and change. It is also a challenge and when approached proactively, it is completely possible to adapt. Currently, we are quite confident that there has been a positive transformation. Many products have been commercialized on the market and put into practical application. At Vingroup, some units in the group have also applied our AI products and commercialized them to businesses in the fields of aviation, banking... and have been well received.
Do you prefer to be called a scientist or a businessman?
- It's hard to say whether I like it or not because I come from a scientist background. That's also my advantage when switching to developing applied products because I can think, research deeply, understand the product more deeply... In addition, I myself am always renewed when changing.
People often think that the technology field is more closed, but with the current trend of technology development, it needs to be much more open. Technologists should not only have in-depth knowledge of technology but also need other skills to be successful. Having a broad enough understanding of different fields can help develop suitable products, bringing the best experience to users.
People often think that people working in information technology are often dry and rigid because they work in a mechanical, computational environment... If we were to imagine a person working in technology, how would we imagine CEO Dao Duc Minh? As the head of VinBigdata, how do you usually inspire your employees?
- Clearly, we are a technology company. We aim for and have different qualities to both research and develop technology deeply, and apply technology to products for commercialization, helping businesses solve their problems. I myself do not evaluate too deeply, but I see that there is something that needs improvement and I am always ready to accept and change. At VinBigdata, we create an environment that is vibrant, youthful, and promotes creativity.
I pursue great missions and always show VinBigdata employees that they are also an important part of the journey to pursue those great missions. I want to create an open and innovative working environment: valuing knowledge and talent, and encouraging employees to come up with and exchange new ideas to optimize work efficiency.
After Al, Big Data, what direction will technology trends go, according to your prediction?
- Vietnam has many advantages to develop technology, ranking 5th in Southeast Asia and 59th out of 193 countries/territories in the global AI readiness index in 2023 according to the "Government AI Readiness Index" report conducted by Oxford Insights (UK).
Vietnam's technology industry has made significant progress in recent years, however, compared to leading technology countries such as the US, China, or regional countries such as Singapore, we still have a certain gap. To close this gap and create momentum for technology development, Vietnam needs to focus on developing 3 pillars:
People: It is necessary to train and develop high-quality technology human resources, especially in the fields of AI and Big Data. Improving the education level, skills and innovative thinking of the workforce is extremely important.
Resources here include not only financial resources but also natural resources, technological infrastructure and data platforms. Vietnam needs to invest heavily in research and development (R&D), build high-tech parks, innovative research centers, and improve internet and telecommunications infrastructure to support technological development.
Regarding tools, I think we need to focus on developing and applying modern tools, software, and technology platforms such as artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and other digital technologies to improve productivity and innovation.
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