Vietnam conglomerate Vingroup to set up robotics company

Vingroup, the largest private conglomerate in Vietnam, plans to establish VinMotion, a company specializing in research, development, and application of multifunctional robots.

Under a decision recently approved by its board of directors, VinMotion will have a charter capital of VND1 trillion ($39.42 million), with Vingroup holding a 51% stake.

Since the beginning of 2024, Vingroup chairman Pham Nhat Vuong has consistently founded new businesses within the high-tech industrial ecosystem.

In March 2024, he established V-GREEN, which focuses on the development of charging stations to support electric vehicles (EV) maker VinFast’s global expansion. Then he founded a company for the purchase and leasing of EVs, and another providing EV driver training services.

Most recently, in late November, his two sons, Pham Nhat Quan Anh and Pham Nhat Minh Hoang, contributed capital to establish VinRobotics, a company focused on robotics development. The company has a charter capital of VND1 trillion ($39.42 million), with Vingroup holding a 51% stake, its co-founder Pham Nhat Vuong 39%, and Vuong’s two sons 5% each.

This move contributes to completing the high-tech industrial ecosystem, one of the three main pillars of the group.

VinRobotics CEO Ngo Quoc Hung said he believed in the technological era, high-value products and solutions will contribute to the country’s socio-economic development.

In the technology sector, Vingroup has built a dense ecosystem, with the most notable being VinAI, which develops products for VinFast EVs and Vinhomes housing projects.

Pham Nhat Vuong’s portfolio previously included VinBrain, which operates in the field of artificial intelligence. The company was wholly acquired by U.S. tech giant Nvidia, with its chief tax officer Mark Steven Hoose appointed as chairman and legal representative.

According to an updated business registration from VinBrain, Hoose is authorized to represent the VND627.7 billion ($24.74 million) stake, which is the entire charter capital of the AI company.

Hoose, born in 1967, is also chairman and CEO of Nvidia Vietnam LLC, the legal entity representing Nvidia in Vietnam, which was established in late May 2024.

Nividia CEO Jensen Huang highlighted at a meeting with the Vietnamese government on Deember 5, 2024 that Nvidia is lucky to cooperate with Vingroup and VinBrain, an “extraordinary” AI start-up in Vietnam.

“With VinBrain, we now have the starting point of a major future design center and today is the first day. I am very happy. Today is the birthday of Nvidia Vietnam,” Huang said.

Nvidia and the Vietnamese Government on December 5, 2024 signed a deal to jointly set up an AI R&D center and an AI data center in Vietnam, which are expected to turn the country into a hub of Asia in this field.

Looking ahead, Vingroup has stated it will proactively prepare resources, optimize cash flow management, and leverage fundraising opportunities from domestic and international markets when conditions permit to ensure sustainable development.

Vingroup is listed on the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange as VIC, which closed Friday at VND40,500 ($1.59) per share.