Vietnam Approves AI Act, Says Technology Should Serve People Not Replace Them
Vietnam's National Assembly overwhelmingly passed an AI Act on Wednesday, the country's first legislation to comprehensively regulate AI development, application and governance, the Ministry of Science and Technology said, according to a translation.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Privacy Daily provides accurate coverage of newsworthy developments in data protection legislation, regulation, litigation, and enforcement for privacy professionals responsible for ensuring effective organizational data privacy compliance.
The measure balances controlling risk and promoting innovation in accordance with international practices, the ministry said. Set to take effect March 1, the law stipulates that AI should serve people and not replace them, and requires that people supervise important decisions made by the technology.
It also establishes a national AI development fund, creates an AI voucher mechanism to support AI application businesses, and establishes a controlled testing sandbox for sensitive AI solutions, the ministry noted. Vietnam wants to integrate more deeply with international standards while retaining digital sovereignty, it said.
A key element of the measure is that AI systems are to be classified by the extent of their impact and risk, with applications that pose a high risk to people and organizations -- such as those in the fields of health, finance and justice -- having to meet stricter standards of data, inspection, supervision and human intervention, the ministry said.
Passage of the law was considered "inevitable and timely" as AI penetrates all areas of life, the government said. A complete, clear framework will help Vietnam avoid the risk of lagging behind, ensuring data safety and privacy, as well as sustainable AI development, it added.