Vietnam is regarded as one of the most dynamic and promising destinations for innovation and startups in Southeast Asia, with a rapidly-growing, diverse, and well-connected ecosystem, and ranked 55th globally and fifth in Southeast Asia in the 2025 Global Startup Ecosystem Index published by StartupBlink.
Localities around the country have also made remarkable progress within this vibrant national startup landscape, with three cities featured in the global rankings: Ho Chi Minh City at 110th (up one place from last year), Hanoi 148th (up nine places), and Da Nang 766th (up 130 places). Startup support movements in cities and provinces nationwide have gained strong momentum in recent years, reflecting local consensus and active participation in the national innovation program.
Expanding nationwide
Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang stand out for creating favorable environments where innovation infrastructure, markets, and human resources converge, creating fertile ground for nurturing creative ideas and new business models.
Ho Chi Minh City, in particular, is considered a “promised land” for startups and is the cradle of many tech unicorns. The city is home to more than 2,000 startups, or around half of Vietnam’s total, and attracts some 44 per cent of startup investment capital nationally. Its startup ecosystem is currently valued at $7.4 billion, and features over 100 venture capital funds, creating a dynamic and promising environment for innovation.
The city has continually expanded its innovation and startup activities, confirming its strong commitment to becoming a leading hub in the field. Of particular note, the inauguration of the Startup & Innovation Hub of Ho Chi Minh City (SIHUB) in late August marked a major step forward in implementing Politburo Resolution No. 57-NQ/TW on fostering breakthroughs in science and technology and in achieving the goal of positioning the city among the world’s Top 100 most dynamic innovation ecosystems.
Moreover, the Ho Chi Minh City People’s Committee has announced plans to establish a new Ho Chi Minh City Innovation Hub - a large-scale venue for research, creativity, and collaboration aimed at accelerating the city’s development and spreading its impact across the southern key economic region and Vietnam as a whole.
Hanoi has also been actively promoting local startup support programs, and has about 1,000 innovative startups. The Hanoi People’s Council recently approved a pilot project to establish the Hanoi Venture Capital Fund (HVCF), designed to invest in high-tech enterprises, science and technology companies, and innovative startups in key sectors, representing an important step in promoting innovation and commercializing scientific and technological products.
In addition to creating the venture fund, the capital also introduced policies that cover up to 70 per cent of the cost of capacity-building programs for innovative startups and subsidized infrastructure use at high-tech parks, innovation centers, and technology incubators.
Meanwhile, Da Nang has been steadily asserting its position as a dynamic innovation hub for the central region and central highlands. 2025 marked a milestone, with Da Nang making its debut among the world’s Top 1,000 startup ecosystems - recognition of both its sound strategic direction and the city government’s long-term vision for developing a knowledge and technology-driven economy.
The city is also carrying out a project to develop an international-scale Innovation and Startup Center, which is expected to be completed by December. This is among its key projects to realize its ambition of becoming a center for innovation and startups in the central region and central highlands.
Beyond these major cities, other localities such as Hai Phong, Nghe An, and Hue have also been active within Vietnam’s vibrant startup movement, reflecting the strong and growing spirit of innovation spreading around the country.
Closing the gap
Though many localities are showing positive momentum in innovation and entrepreneurship, the distribution of startups nationwide remains uneven.
According to the Vietnam National Startup Support Center (NSSC), a significant gap still exists between regions in terms of startup density, resources, and institutional support. Outside of major hubs like Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, and Da Nang, many localities still lack essential drivers to grow their startup ecosystem, resulting in clear disparities in development pace between regions.
To build a more balanced and inclusive ecosystem, upcoming policies should prioritize expanding incubation and acceleration infrastructure to less-developed areas, which would help unlock local innovation potential. Strengthening inter-provincial cooperation, sharing best practices, and replicating successful startup models would also be key to creating a stronger, interconnected national network for innovation.
Equally important is the need for support models tailored to the unique socio-economic conditions in each locality, rather than applying a uniform model from major cities. Greater mobilization of public-private partnerships (PPPs) will also be crucial in narrowing the innovation gap between regions, ensuring more equitable access to technology, finance, and training for startups nationwide. Direct support for startups themselves remains an indispensable part of developing local innovation ecosystems.
Ms. Dang Thi Luan, Acting Director of SIHUB, noted that more than 70 per cent of startups in Ho Chi Minh City lack investment capital, 45 per cent face legal barriers, and 30 per cent struggle with a shortage of skilled talent - factors that hinder research, commercialization, and market expansion. This, she explained, reflects a broader challenge shared by most cities and provinces around the country.
She suggested that the city upgrade and synchronize both physical and technological infrastructure to create an environment more conducive to startups working, experimenting, and growing. At the same time, policies should encourage broader participation from venture capital funds, large corporations, tech companies, and universities to form a closely-linked startup value chain.
Regarding human capital development, Ms. Luan emphasized the need to expand community training and capacity-building programs focused on innovation, entrepreneurship, AI, and the semiconductor industry. “International cooperation programs on training, incubation, networking, and market expansion for startups should be strengthened further,” she said.
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