A landmark agreement between Abu Dhabi-based AI firm G42, Vietnamese IT giant FPT Corporation, and consumer conglomerate Viet Thai Group will bring up to $1 billion in investment to develop sovereign AI capabilities and cloud infrastructure across Vietnam. The partnership, formalized in Ho Chi Minh City, aims to establish Vietnam as a leading AI hub in Southeast Asia by deploying high-performance cloud capacity across three strategically located data centers.
Strategic Partnership for Digital Resilience
The deal solidifies a previously reported $2 billion data center project, with G42 leveraging its expertise and global partnerships to accelerate Vietnam’s digital transformation. The initiative addresses the country’s growing demand for data center capacity as it transitions toward a fully digital economy. Crucially, the partnership prioritizes national data sovereignty and digital resilience, ensuring that sensitive information remains within Vietnamese jurisdiction.
Key Project Details
The framework cooperation agreement establishes the legal and financial foundations for the project, with both the Vietnamese government and consortium partners praising the forward-thinking regulatory environment. Following this agreement, the next steps include finalizing workload distribution between public and private sectors, securing regulatory approvals for public cloud adoption, and commencing construction on the three data center sites.
Economic and Workforce Development
The initiative is expected to generate significant economic impact through direct infrastructure investment and job creation, positioning Vietnam as a strategic technology hub for the region. Beyond infrastructure development, the partnership includes national AI skilling programs designed to build domestic AI talent pipelines across government, industry, and academia.
Global Intelligence Grid
This project aligns with G42’s broader mission to build a global Intelligence Grid—an interconnected network of AI infrastructure, cloud platforms, and governance frameworks that enable AI capabilities while respecting national sovereignty. The move underscores a growing trend of sovereign AI development, where nations seek to retain control over their data and technological infrastructure.
Local Expertise and Government Support
FPT Corporation, already ranked among the top high-performance computing systems in Asia (36th and 38th globally in June 2025), brings deep technical expertise and local market knowledge. Viet Thai Group, with its extensive retail network, provides complementary strategic capabilities. The Vietnamese government actively encourages co-investment in data centers and 5G networks to accelerate national digital transformation goals.
This partnership represents a significant step toward Vietnam becoming a regional leader in AI, combining international expertise with local strengths to build a resilient and sovereign digital future.
The project’s success hinges on regulatory approvals and efficient deployment, but the $1 billion commitment demonstrates serious intent from all stakeholders. Vietnam’s ambition to become an “AI-native society” is now backed by substantial investment and strategic partnerships.
