At the Ministerial Roundtable held during Vietnam International Digital Week 2026, executives from domestic and international technology companies agreed that the telecommunications industry is undergoing a fundamental transformation.

While telecommunications has focused for decades on connecting people, the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI) is shifting its mission toward delivering tangible value to everyone and everything connected to networks.

Rita Mokbel, President and CEO of Ericsson Vietnam, said telecommunications performance is no longer measured solely by the number of people connected, but also by what AI and technology enable people to accomplish beyond their previous capabilities.

AI is creating new demands for network infrastructure, she explained, as 5G increasingly becomes the digital foundation supporting AI applications.

Describing Vietnam as one of the region's fastest adopters of 5G, Mokbel said the full deployment of standalone 5G networks would provide the infrastructure needed for deeper AI integration across smart manufacturing, logistics and healthcare.

Vasanth Pandiaraj, ASEAN AI Technology Strategist at Cisco Systems, emphasized that bridging the gap between AI experimentation and large-scale deployment depends heavily on network capabilities.

He argued that successful AI adoption requires more than sophisticated algorithms. Organizations also need access to high-quality data, computing capacity and stable, high-speed, secure connectivity.

Network infrastructure and cybersecurity must be designed together from the outset to build digital trust and protect data as AI becomes increasingly embedded in everyday activities.

From a hardware architecture perspective, Jitendra Singh, Senior Director of Government Affairs and Spectrum Strategy for Asia-Pacific at Qualcomm, explained that AI processing is gradually shifting from centralized cloud data centers toward network edges and end-user devices.

Because of latency and power consumption constraints, hybrid AI models require distributed telecommunications networks capable of seamlessly connecting devices with computing facilities.

Over the longer term, 6G networks are expected to integrate three functions: connectivity, computing and sensing.

Representing Vietnam's domestic technology sector, Ngo Dien Hy, Deputy CEO of VNPT, said AI performance depends directly on network quality and connectivity.

"Connectivity is no longer simply about network access. It must also deliver secure and effective AI services to businesses and citizens, wherever they are," he said. "AI connects not only people but also billions of IoT devices. These connections must be protected, and ensuring their security is becoming increasingly complex in the AI era."

VNPT currently operates eight major data centers and has deployed its AI ecosystem across Vietnam's 34 provinces and cities.

Hy said AI governance should be incorporated into products from the design stage, ensuring regulatory compliance without slowing innovation, as Vietnam works toward developing sovereign AI capabilities.

Experts described the relationship between AI and telecommunications as mutually reinforcing. Telecommunications networks provide the infrastructure for AI applications, while AI helps networks become more autonomous, detect digital fraud patterns and prevent telecommunications scams.

Concluding the discussion, Minister Vu Hai Quan outlined three guiding principles for the next stage of development.

"First, intelligent connectivity must come first. Second, sound governance builds trust and paves the way for innovation. Third, AI transformation must ultimately be human-centered and serve people," he said.

Du Lam