Jensen Huang, chairman and CEO of the Silicon Valley chip titan, met with Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh during a visit to Hanoi, where the two agreed to open an artificial intelligence research and development centre.

"The data of Vietnam is a national and its natural resource. The AI of Vietnam should be processed here, built here, operated here, for the people and industry of Vietnam," Huang said.

Huang said Nvidia was helping Vietnam build its "first AI cloud", as well as advancing robotics and AI-powered smart cities in the country.

Chinh called the deal a "significant milestone for Vietnam to become a leading research and development hub in Asia".

Huang's Vietnam visit comes after a trip to Bangkok where he said he would support AI development in Thailand and signed a partnership with Thai tech company SIAM.AI to build the country's first "sovereign cloud".

Nvidia has already invested over $250 million in Vietnam, according to Huang, and the US chip designer is working with some of Vietnam's top tech firms to deploy AI in the cloud, automotive and healthcare industries.

Huang also announced that Nvidia had acquired VinBrain, an AI startup under Vingroup, one of Vietnam's largest technology and property conglomerates.

During a previous visit, Huang had said he wanted to set up a base in the country.

Global supply chain shocks and fears about the US reliance on China for strategic resources are boosting investment in Vietnam's growing semiconductor industry.

Across the region, governments are vying for US tech dollars, with Vietnam making a drive to move up the value chain from a hub for producing shoes, clothes and furniture.

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