Ho Chi Minh City selects nine strategic technology groups under Plan 122 for 2030

Ho Chi Minh City’s Plan No. 122/KH-UBND, issued on 01/04/2026, sets out a roadmap for developing strategic technology and strategic technology products through 2030. The plan focuses on moving beyond research toward mastering, localizing, and commercializing platform technologies, with the aim of creating new growth momentum and strengthening the city’s competitiveness as the country’s leading economic hub.

Cause: Building a strategic technology ecosystem

Plan 122 is anchored in government directions on the list of strategic technologies and the program for developing strategic technology products to be deployed immediately. It is also aligned with the goal of making Ho Chi Minh City a leading center of regional innovation.

The plan’s core direction is to gradually form a complete strategic technology ecosystem. This includes a comprehensive survey of the city’s technology landscape in 2026 to build a database and identify the capabilities of each ecosystem participant, from research institutes and universities to enterprises. The survey is intended to reduce scattered investment and ensure programs are targeted.

Development: Shared infrastructure and market-linked research

Plan 122 emphasizes building technology infrastructure for shared use and sharing. Instead of dispersed investment, the city plans to develop research centers, laboratories, and technology platforms that can serve the full value chain—from research and testing to commercialization.

The plan also links technology development to market demand. Ho Chi Minh City selects nine strategic technology groups with 26 priority product groups, covering areas including artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, 5G/6G networks, blockchain, semiconductors, new energy, cloud computing, and biomedical technology.

Priority directions highlighted in the plan include Vietnamese-language large language models, AI chips, autonomous robots, hydrogen energy, and gene and cell therapies.

Data and targets through 2030

• Support for the development of 30–50 strategic technology products with commercialization potential by 2030.
• Formation of 5–7 centers, laboratories, and shared platforms to serve research and development.
• Support for approximately 100–150 enterprises to participate in research, development, and application of strategic technologies.
• Expected direct application of about 10–15 products in state management, public services, or key economic sectors.
• Attraction of 30–50 experts and scientists from both domestic and abroad to participate in strategic technology tasks.
• Development of strong research groups under a university–institute–industry collaboration model.
• Implementation of 10–15 international collaboration programs in research and technology transfer.
• Formation of cross-regional value chains for strategic technologies through 3–5 collaboration programs.

Impact: Commercialization, human resources, and value-chain upgrading

Plan 122 prioritizes a clear commercialization pathway for research results, increasing the proportion of science and technology tasks that produce practical products generating revenue or tangible socio-economic value. Strategic technology products are intended to be prioritized in key urban areas and major city challenges, including urban management and public services, industrial production, and high-tech agriculture, with an emphasis on anchoring development in the domestic market.

The plan also targets high-quality human resources by linking training to real projects, laboratories, and enterprises. This is intended to form a cadre of experts, engineers, and scientists capable of mastering technology.

Overall, Plan 122 reflects a shift from a science-and-technology support approach toward a growth-oriented role—building the capacity to master technology, deploying it into the economy, and generating commercial value to strengthen Ho Chi Minh City’s position in the global value chain.