FPT highlights innovation, public-private partnership as pillars of Vietnam’s digital healthcare future

Binh made the remarks at the Healthcare Innovation Forum (HIF) 2025, co-hosted in Hanoi on Friday by FPT and Pharma Group, which represents the innovative pharmaceutical industry in Vietnam and operates under the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam (EuroCham), according to an FPT press release issued the same day.

The event served as a multi-stakeholder platform to spotlight breakthroughs in science, technology, and AI, aimed at accelerating healthcare innovation and driving digital transformation in public health services.

"To accompany Vietnam's new era of advancement, the healthcare sector must achieve breakthroughs in three key areas: regulation, innovation, and PPP," Binh told the forum.

He emphasized that the sector must move beyond restrictive mindsets and begin treating regulation as a catalyst for national competitiveness, enabling faster access to new medicines, as seen in countries like the U.S. and Japan.

On innovation, Binh asserted that Vietnam could emerge as a hub for AI-powered clinical trials and drug development by leveraging its strong pool of tech talent — with one million IT workers, half of whom are expected to become AI-proficient.

"Just as Vietnam rose to global prominence in software, it can now strive to lead in innovative pharmaceuticals — one of the world's most advanced industries," he noted.

He also called for expanded PPPs to better connect hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, and healthcare professionals through shared data platforms.

Darrell Oh, chairman of Pharma Group, reaffirmed the organization's commitment to supporting Vietnam in achieving the objectives set out in Vision 2045.

He emphasized that reaching these goals will require a unified, multi-stakeholder effort, and that only through sustained collaboration can policy be translated into meaningful, lasting improvements in public health.

"Investing in healthcare is ultimately an investment in Vietnam's most vital asset: its people," he said.

According to FPT, recent data shows that 80 percent of pharmaceutical professionals now use AI for drug discovery, and 95 percent of companies are investing in the technology. 

AI has the potential to reduce drug development time from five to six years to just one. In clinical trials, it can lower costs by up to 70 percent and shorten timelines by 80 percent.

"AI and GenAI are transforming the pharmaceutical industry, offering major benefits such as faster drug development and more efficient clinical trials across the entire value chain," said Hoang Viet Anh, chairman of both FPT Digital and FPT Telecom under FPT Corporation.

He described this as a pivotal moment for digital transformation and outlined a roadmap for Vietnam's pharmaceutical sector through 2028.

Plans include launching a centralized data system and AI lab pilots in 2025, testing blockchain solutions to combat counterfeit drugs in 2026, and reducing drug trial time by 20 percent in 2027 — with the ultimate goal of establishing Vietnam as ASEAN's leading AI hub by 2028.