Vingroup—controlled by billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong, Vietnam’s wealthiest person—has sold its generative artificial intelligence (AI) division to U.S. chipmaker Qualcomm.
Qualcomm has acquired MovianAI Artificial Intelligence Application and Research, the San Diego, California-based company said in a statement, without disclosing the amount. MovianAI is the former generative AI division of VinAI Application and Research JSC, part of Vingroup, Vietnam’s largest conglomerate.
“By bringing in high-caliber talent from VinAI, we are strengthening our ability to deliver cutting-edge AI solutions that will benefit a wide range of industries and consumers,” said Jilei Hou, senior vice president of engineering at Qualcomm. This acquisition will help make Qualcomm “the driving force behind the next wave of AI innovation.”
VinAI founder and CEO Hung Bui, who previously worked at Google DeepMind, will join Qualcomm as part of the deal. He built VinAI’s expertise in generative AI, machine learning, computer vision, and natural language processing.
Qualcomm said it has been building up its AI research and development capabilities internally to create advanced AI solutions for smartphones, computers, and vehicles.
“We are ready to contribute to Qualcomm’s mission of making breakthroughs in fundamental AI research and scale them across industries,” Hung said. “Our team’s expertise in generative AI and machine learning will help accelerate the development of innovative solutions that can transform the way we live and work.”
The U.S. tech giant said it’s been working with the Vietnamese technology ecosystem in the past two decades to create and deliver innovative solutions. Its innovations in the areas of 5G, AI, Internet of Things and automotive helped boost Vietnam’s information and communication technology industry and put Vietnamese companies globally.
With a real-time net worth of $7.7 billion, Pham got his start from an instant noodles business he founded in Ukraine in 1993. He sold the business to Nestle in 2010, using the proceeds to start Vingroup, which has since grown to become a diversified conglomerate with interests in real estate, retail, healthcare, education, autos and technology.
