Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Bui The Duy (Photo: dangcongsan.vn)

The conference is part of a national program supporting research, development, and application of 4.0 technologies which is being implemented by the Ministry of Science and Technology. Applying AI in gene decoding, which helps doctors provide better treatment, gives Vietnam an opportunity to be the leader in this field, according to the conference. David Strohm of the Greylock Investment Fund, gave several recommendations for Vietnam. He said “I think it would be extremely helpful if a broad-based genetics institute and testing capability were established in Vietnam. It would eliminate the need to do testing offshore, which has high expense and a long turn-around time, as well as the risk of the data being handled by parties in other countries, which I think is something that the government may have sensitivity to. So, I think moving as quickly as possible to establish a broad-based global scale institute in Vietnam will enable the outcomes that Genetica is committed to the improvement of health care outcomes. But it also will, I think, create the potential to launch Vietnam toward being a regional or global leader in this industry. This is an industry that's moving very rapidly. If Vietnamese genome is not represented, if the Vietnamese health care system is not actively involved, and if there is not local capability to create leadership in Vietnam and South East Asia, there's a risk of being left behind. So, I think it’s very important that private companies like Genetica, as well as the government and medical institutions, pull together to support the creation of this capability.”