The country's demand for high-tech workers is estimated to reach 350,000 in 2020, but it is likely to face a shortage of 70,000-90,000, said Prof. Nguyen Thanh Thuy, Deputy Principal of the University of Engineering Technology of Vietnam National University at an IT conference on Friday.

While AI research has been happening for around 5-7 years, Vietnam will need the human resources to develop and apply such technology. However, training people for this sector is no small task, said Thuy.

Currently, global demand for AI engineers is one million people, while there are only around 10,000 individuals worldwide with the right skills to spearhead serious new AI projects, Thuy said, citing Google Brain, the deep learning artificial intelligence team at Google Inc.

Prof. Ho Tu Bao, Director of the John von Neumann Institute, said Vietnamese businesses need to coordinate with training institutions to produce short term courses and curricula to develop professional AI human resources.

"This year, the Hanoi University of Science and Technology has opened a new AI school, which has the highest entry requirement in the university for a limited number of students."

According to a recent survey on workers in the IT industry by research firm Navigos’ in Vietnam, 69 percent said they intend to switch jobs, and 31 percent said they were thinking about it. The main reason, they found, was that employees were not satisfied with remuneration from companies.

Vietnam is seeing a brain drain in the IT industry because remuneration and investment in human resources, especially in high-tech manpower, has not been given special importance. "The government needs to enact policies to foster high-tech talents," said Ngo Thi Ngoc Lan, Northern region director of Navigos.

Vietnam is keeping up with global AI trends, with Ho Chi Minh City, its biggest city, spearheading the effort.

Earlier this month, it opened Vietnam’s first AI-powered socioeconomic simulation center to predict future trends for the southern metropolis, the country's key economic driver.

Foreign and local companies are now investing heavily in AI, especially by acquiring AI startups or creating their own research labs and companies, Hanoi-based tech firm Rubik AI said in January. The report also discovered that some universities offer AI modules in their curricula.

Research on AI has been around 5 – 7 years, but Vietnam will need the human resources to develop and apply such technology. Training people for this sector is no small task, and there is a shortage of AI developers worldwide, said Prof. Nguyen Thanh Thuy, deputy principal of the University of Engineering Technology (of Vietnam National University) at an IT conference on Friday.

Currently, global demand for AI engineers is 1 million people, while there are only around 10,000 individuals worldwide with the right skills to spearhead serious new AI projects, Thuy cited Google Brain, the deep learning artificial intelligence team at Google, as saying.

However, the global AI shortage presents an opportunity for Vietnam to develop human resources in the sector, said Prof. Ho Tu Bao, Director of the John von Neumann Institute.

Vietnam currently has a "golden population structure", with 65 percent of the population of working age, and 143 million mobile phone subscribers, and the country is undertaking digitization towards Industry 4.0 technology, he said.

Vietnam’s businesses need to coordinate with training institutions to produce short term courses and curricula to development of professional AI human resources, said Prof. Bao.

"This year, Hanoi University of Science and Technology has opened a new AI school, which has the highest entry requirements in the university for a limited number of students."

Although demand for manpower is high, there are still many challenges to training AI human resources in Vietnam.

According to a recent survey on workers in the IT industry by research firm Navigos’ in Vietnam, 69 percent said they intend to switch jobs, and 31 percent said they were thinking about it. The main reason, they found, was that employees were not satisfied with remuneration from companies.

Vietnam is seeing a brain drain in the IT industry because remuneration and investment in human resources, especially in high-tech manpower, has not been given special importance. "The government needs to enact policies to foster high-tech talents," said Ngo Thi Ngoc Lan, Northern region director of Navigos.

As rare as AI personnel are, finding teachers to train them is even more difficult, and Vietnam as such needs to focus resources to build a team of both local and foreign experts, who will be able to create a foundation for AI in Vietnam, Prof. Bao added.

Vietnam is keeping up with global AI trends, with Ho Chi Minh City, its biggest city, spearheading the efforts.

Earlier this month it opened Vietnam’s first AI-powered socioeconomic simulation center to predict future trends for the southern metropolis, the country's key economic driver.

Foreign and local companies are now investing heavily in AI, especially by acquiring AI startups or creating their own research labs and companies, Hanoi-based tech firm Rubik AI said in January.

The report also discovered that some universities offer AI modules in their curricula.