National AI Development Fund to be funded by the state budget with a total size of 30 trillion VND

The National AI Development Fund is planned to have a total capital size of 30 trillion VND, funded through the state budget and allocated in multiple installments in line with the state budget balance and the requirements for implementing assigned tasks.

Draft decree to implement the AI Law

The Ministry of Science and Technology is drafting a Decree on the National AI Development Fund to specify provisions of the AI Law. The Fund is established by the Government, operates on a non-profit basis, belongs to a group of state financial funds outside the budget, and is managed by the Ministry of Science and Technology.

Under the draft, the Fund will use received and managed financial resources from the state budget, along with lawful contributions from organizations and individuals domestically and abroad, to carry out investment, sponsorship, and support activities aimed at developing artificial intelligence—from research and development to application and commercialization.

Financing levels for tasks

The draft stipulates that the Fund may finance up to 70% of the total cost of a task and provide support up to 50%, depending on the nature and scale of the task. In special cases, the support level may be decided by the Prime Minister.

Operating support

Operating expenditures include costs for accessing and using computing infrastructure, data, and testing environments; costs for evaluation, testing, and quality assurance; costs for technical and legal consulting; and costs to complete products and bring them to market.

Sponsorship activities

For sponsorship activities, the draft focuses on research and mastering core technologies. Sponsored activities include developing AI models, data and language processing, training and deployment technologies, hardware and semiconductors, computing technology, and tools for safety and risk governance.

The draft also emphasizes developing open-source solutions and shared platforms to help build a domestic AI ecosystem.

Evaluation and continuation of funding

During implementation, the Fund will conduct periodic or ad hoc evaluations to determine whether to continue funding, adjust funding, or terminate tasks. Evaluations will be based on progress, results achieved, the use of funds, and emerging factors.

End-of-mission evaluations will focus on goal completion, product quality, and output efficiency, including applicability and contributions to innovation.

AI infrastructure investment mechanism

For AI infrastructure investment tasks, the draft defines these as strategic activities serving public interest and not aimed at profit. The Fund may invest in shared AI infrastructure, including computing power, data, platforms, and AI models.

These investment tasks do not apply the procedures of the Public Investment Law; instead, they operate under a separate mechanism designed to ensure flexibility. The State accepts risk in these activities, provided implementation complies with relevant regulations.

Funding scale and financial arrangements

Financially, the Fund is funded by the state budget with a total scale of 30 trillion VND, initially 1 trillion VND, and allocated in multiple tranches to match the state budget balance and the Fund’s task requirements. The Fund may also receive other lawful financial sources such as sponsorships, grants, and revenue from its operations.

The Fund is supported annually to maintain a minimum of 1 trillion VND at the start of each fiscal year.

The draft highlights a special financial mechanism that allows flexible capital allocations not tied to a fiscal year, with streamlined procedures for urgent missions and acceptance of controlled risks.

Costs, reporting, and auditing

The Fund’s costs include investment, sponsorship, support, and administrative expenses. Administrative costs are defined as a percentage of total annual disbursement to ensure financial autonomy. The Fund may also deposit idle funds in banks to improve capital utilization.

The Fund is responsible for periodic reporting on revenues and expenditures and for public financial disclosure, and it may hire independent auditors to audit the use of funds.