US, Vietnam executives discuss new partnerships as Biden visits Hanoi; AI deals unveiled

Executives of U.S. and Vietnamese firms in the semiconductor, tech and aviation sectors held a meeting Monday as part of U.S. President Biden's visit to the Vietnamese capital of Hanoi.

Senior executives from Google, Intel, Amkor, Marvell, GlobalFoundries and Boeing, as well as several companies from Vietnam, attended the Vietnam-U.S. Innovation & Investment Summit to develop business partnerships and form new deals on Artificial Intelligence.

The Vietnamese companies included electric car manufacturer VinFast, flag carrier Vietnam Airlines, tech company FPT, e-wallet company MoMo and internet firm VNG, which filed for a U.S. initial public offering in August.

The meeting highlighted the U.S. effort to increase Vietnam's global role, particularly in chipmaking, and as the U.S. seeks to bolster its own regional influence amid tensions with China.

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Vietnam's investment minister Nguyen Chi Dzung chaired the summit. Discussions with Biden and Vietnam Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh happened after the meeting.

The White House announced chip-related investments by U.S. firms in Vietnam, including plans by Marvell and Synopsys to build chip design centers in Vietnam.

It also unveiled an agreement by Microsoft and Trusting Social to create a "generative AI-based solution tailored for Vietnam and emerging markets." 

Other deals announced at the summit included Nvidia partnering with Vietnamese firms FPT, Viettel and Vingroup, VinFast's parent company, to "deploy AI in the cloud, automotive, and healthcare industries" in Vietnam while Meta Platforms and the Vietnam National Innovation Center will partner together for a program to "promote digital transformation among small and medium enterprises."

Amkor Technology, which is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona, will also develop a new $1.6 billion factory in Vietnam's Bac Ninh Province near Hanoi that will assemble, package and test chips is due to start operations in October, it added.

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The investment value surpasses Intel's $1.5 billion chip assembling plant in the south region of the country, the company's largest in the world.

Vietnam Airlines will also purchase 50 Boeing 737 Max jets in a deal valued at close to $8 billion. The agreement will "benefit both countries by supporting U.S. manufacturing jobs and providing world-class aircraft to support Vietnam’s growing travel and tourism industry as they aspire to become a leading aviation hub," the White House said. This deal will support more than 33,000 direct and indirect jobs across the U.S.

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U.S. company Honeywell will cooperate with a Vietnamese partner to launch a pilot project to establish Vietnam's first battery energy storage system, according to the White House.

"We welcome the progress of U.S. and Vietnamese businesses moving ahead with new and expanded initiatives that will increase trade and commerce between our two countries," the White House said.

Prime Minister Chinh will visit the U.S. later this month for the United Nations General Assembly.

Reuters contributed to this report.