Hanoi, July 20, 2026 – The Europe Today: Practical artificial intelligence (AI) solutions took centre stage at the Vietnam AI Innovation Challenge (VAIC) 2026, where participants presented innovative technologies designed to address real-world challenges across sectors including law, education, finance and public services.
The competition concluded on Sunday following an intensive 48-hour hackathon, attracting nearly 1,500 participants from 340 teams nationwide. Contestants developed AI-powered prototypes under the guidance of industry experts before presenting their projects during the final Demo Day.
The top prize of US$10,000 was awarded to L-GPT 6.7 for its project Lawgic, a legal analysis platform that integrates large language models with knowledge graph technology to improve legal reasoning and information retrieval.
Genation secured second place with Tangent, an AI platform that transforms users’ questions into visual learning materials, while SenAI claimed third place for its real-time English-Vietnamese translation system.
Organisers noted that this year’s competition reflected a significant shift from research-focused AI development towards practical, market-ready applications. Many of the competing projects addressed pressing challenges faced by businesses, government agencies and public service providers, with judging criteria placing equal emphasis on innovation, technical excellence, commercial viability and real-world impact.
Dr. Trần Việt Hùng, co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of AI for Vietnam, said the competition was designed to build stronger connections between businesses and young innovators rather than simply identify winning AI solutions. He stressed that the initiative aims to help transform promising ideas into commercially viable products capable of addressing practical needs.
Speaking at the closing ceremony, Vũ Quốc Huy, Director of the National Innovation Centre (NIC), said the high quality of submissions demonstrated the growing maturity of Vietnam’s AI ecosystem and the increasing capability of young Vietnamese engineers to develop innovative technologies with commercial potential.
He added that the National Innovation Centre would continue supporting outstanding teams through incubation and accelerator programmes, while providing access to innovation facilities and connecting them with businesses, investors and international partners to facilitate the commercialisation of their technologies.
The judging panel comprised leading AI experts from Vietnam and abroad, including specialists from AI Singapore, the Vietnam Institute for Advanced Study in Mathematics (VIASM) and Nanjing University.
According to the organisers, the competition forms part of Vietnam’s broader efforts to implement the Politburo’s Resolution No. 57, which seeks breakthroughs in science, technology, innovation and national digital transformation by fostering AI talent and strengthening collaboration among policymakers, universities, research institutions and industry.
The organisers also highlighted the hackathon model as an effective platform for rapidly developing prototypes, testing ideas and refining products through close collaboration with experienced mentors and technology specialists.
Trương Quốc Anh, Director of Digital Banking at Saigon-Hanoi Joint Stock Bank (SHB), said the bank had submitted real business challenges for participants to solve, reflecting the growing demand for practical AI applications in the financial sector. He expressed hope that initiatives such as VAIC would generate deployable AI solutions capable of enhancing banking services.
The Vietnam AI Innovation Challenge 2026 was jointly organised by the National Innovation Centre (NIC), Meta, AI for Vietnam, FPT and Duy Tan University, underscoring a shared commitment to accelerating AI innovation and strengthening Vietnam’s digital economy.
