Vietnam has a digital economic scale expected to reach 49 billion USD, the highest growth in Southeast Asia, and has 45 million AI users.

The e-Conomy SEA annual report for the Vietnamese market conducted by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company and published on November 5 shows that Vietnam is considered to lead Southeast Asia in many aspects, such as the growth of the digital economy, the level of access and use of AI.

According to the report, Vietnam recorded 45 million artificial intelligence users, accounting for 65% of the workforce. Which rate is higher than Thailand (63%), but lower than Singapore (70%) and Malaysia (68%).

Meanwhile, in terms of the proportion of users in the workforce using AI, Vietnam leads the region, with 26%. In addition, Google estimates that two out of every five AI users in Vietnam use it daily. They also generate about 31 billion queries per year. This result "leads Southeast Asia in terms of frequency of engagement with GenAI".

Statistics also show that Vietnamese people are incorporating this technology into their daily lives, when each user is using an average of at least 5 different AI tools. Google also recorded a high level of acceptance of autonomous AI technology (agentic AI), when 4 out of 5 users were willing to entrust shopping to agents.

Another notable feature is the extent to which local languages ​​are used. Vietnamese accounts for 80% of all conversations with AI in Vietnam, the highest among the group of six major Southeast Asian economies. 17% of Vietnamese users' commands with Gemini chatbot are for learning purposes. According to the research team, this shows the growing demand for AI models that are fine-tuned to suit the Vietnamese market and language.

The report also noted that Vietnam's digital economy is expected to reach a total value of goods of 49 billion USD in 2026, an increase of 20% compared to the previous year. Meanwhile, Southeast Asia's digital economy achieved an overall growth rate of 17% year-on-year. This result puts Vietnam in the fastest growing group in the region, along with Malaysia.

The main driving force comes from e-commerce. Online shopping continues to expand, with total transaction value expected to reach $32 billion this year. Platforms are also increasingly applying AI to personalize shopping experiences, support sellers in reaching customers and optimizing business operations.

Besides online shopping, online travel, digital media, ride-hailing and food delivery also maintain growth momentum. In particular, online travel benefits from the need to search for destinations, book services and plan trips through digital platforms. Generative AI is also starting to become the tool of choice for Southeast Asian users when preparing for travel, according to the report.

Liu Quy