The Saigon Tech Startup Fest 2016 - the first large-scale tech startup festival in Vietnam, opened in Ho Chi Minh City on March 12, attracting thousands of people, particularly students in the field of information technology. 

Entitled 'Bringing the spirit of Silicon Valley to Vietnam', the festival aims to help young Vietnamese people discover innovative IT projects, emerging technology firms, and meet with leading names in the industry and active communities who are actively promoting the development of domestic tech startup activities.

The event included various activities such as seminars, exhibitions, in-depth discussions and job recruitment with the registration of more than 4,500 people, the participation of 50 enterprises and 20 speakers including speakers from world-renowned companies such as Google, Microsoft, Uber, Tiny Pulse, VNG among others.

Topics of great interest such as digital marketing, entrepreneurial spirit, growth hacking, mobile programming and so on were also discussed by many experts in the field.

One of the highlights of the event included the special ‘Makers' Space’ area developed by Fab Lab, established for enthusiasts of drone, fly cams, virtual reality glasses, 3D printers, laser cutters and others.

The festival was jointly held by GetLinks, Startup.vn, SHIELD and Viet Youth Entrepreneurs. The same event was organised in Thailand in July 2015, attracting more than 3,500 people.

Nhan Dan