Seoul (VNA) – The Republic of Korea (RoK)’s drive to master core technologies in artificial intelligence (AI) robotics is opening up new opportunities for cooperation with Vietnam, particularly in hardware manufacturing, software development, technology testing and human resources training, according to a Vietnamese business representative in the country.
Speaking to Vietnam News Agency correspondents in Seoul, Dao Tuan Hung, President of the Business Association of Vietnamese in Korea (BAVIK), said the RoK’s strategy is not simply about increasing automation, but also about mastering Physical AI and the hardware-software value chain of next-generation robots.
He said Vietnam should adopt a practical approach by prioritising specialised robots, including autonomous mobile robots (AMR/AGV), collaborative robots and machine vision systems, in sectors such as agro-fishery processing, textiles and garments, electronics and logistics.
These industries have clear demand for automation and can help businesses accumulate real-world operational data, an essential resource for training Physical AI models.
Hung identified a promising cooperation model based on combining RoK hardware with Vietnamese software intelligence. Korean companies have strengths in precision mechanics, actuators, sensors and hardware manufacturing, while Vietnam has a large pool of IT engineers with capabilities in embedded software, computer vision, digital twin simulation and algorithm testing.
Bringing the two sides together could help develop cost-competitive AI robotics solutions for markets in Vietnam and across Southeast Asia, he said.
He also proposed turning major foreign-invested industrial complexes in Vietnam, particularly those operated by Korean groups such as Samsung, LG, Hyundai and Doosan, into “living laboratories”. These sites could serve as real-world testing grounds where companies from both countries jointly develop and validate smart robotics solutions.
Such cooperation would also create opportunities for Vietnamese supporting-industry suppliers and system integrators to join the high-tech supply chains of Korean manufacturers.
Hung further stressed the need to expand practical training beyond high-level AI researchers to include system integration engineers, motion-control programmers and technicians responsible for operating and maintaining industrial robots.
He said BAViK and networks of Vietnamese experts and intellectuals in the RoK could act as bridges connecting Korean research institutes, universities such as KAIST and KIST, and DeepTech startups with Vietnamese businesses and localities. This would help promote demand-driven research and development projects and accelerate technology transfer between the two countries. /.
