Vietnam moved up seven and 14 places in the Government AI Readiness Index 2022 compared to 2021 and 2020, respectively, the Ministry of Science and Technology has said.

The recently-released AI Readiness Index report from the UK’s Oxford Insights puts Vietnam at 55th globally, up from 62nd in 2021, and sixth in ASEAN.

The Government AI Readiness Index, previously released in 2017, 2019, 2020, and 2021, marks governments on their preparedness to implement AI in delivering public services. This year it ranked 181 countries, up from 160 last year.

The level of technology throughout East Asia is growing and nine East Asian countries have unicorn companies (worth over $1 billion each) while only six East Asian countries had unicorns in the 2021 rankings.

Vietnam, the Philippines, and Malaysia all have companies that meet the above conditions. According to the report, the region is in a good position to develop technology because of its young population with high levels of digital skills and the ability to quickly adapt to digital solutions.

Vietnam has introduced specific policies over recent years to promote the application of AI, most notably the government’s National Strategy on the Research, Development, and Application of AI by 2030.

The strategy sets a target of accelerating the research, development, and application of AI to make it a key area of technology in Industry 4.0, contributing to national socioeconomic development and turning Vietnam into a center of innovation and the development of AI solutions and applications in the region and the world by 2030.