AI is no longer a futuristic concept in Vietnam. It is already reshaping industries and public services and offering new ways to solve long-standing challenges. From automating tasks to enhancing decision-making, AI is becoming a strategic enabler of not only productivity but also resilience and sustainability.
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| Mr. Luong The Cuong, Senior Manager, ESG Risk Services PwC Vietnam and Mr. Ton That Tuong, Senior Manager, Digital Trust and Cybersecurity Services PwC Vietnam |
The momentum of this technology is growing alongside growing ESG awareness. According to PwC’s ESG Progress Tracker 2025, nearly 90% of Vietnamese companies have or plan to undertake ESG initiatives. However, only 41% incorporate ESG into their core business model.
ESG has evolved from a compliance practice to a strategic lens through which companies assess long-term value, risk, and resilience. The challenge is not in recognizing its importance, but in translating ambition into action.
The convergence of AI and ESG presents transformative opportunities for Vietnamese companies to accelerate their sustainability goals. AI enables real-time monitoring of energy consumption, predictive maintenance, and intelligent resource allocation to improve efficiency and reduce waste. In the energy sector, AI enhances renewable energy integration by predicting solar and wind power generation, improving grid reliability, and supporting smart infrastructure.
These capabilities are particularly important in Vietnam, where the transition to clean energy is a national priority and a strategic growth area. By incorporating AI into environmental activities, companies can reduce emissions, optimize performance, and meaningfully contribute to climate resilience.
Beyond its environmental benefits, AI is reshaping the way companies approach social responsibility. In healthcare, AI supports early diagnosis and personalized treatment to improve outcomes and access. In education, it enables adaptive learning to meet individual needs and helps fill gaps in underserved communities.
AI’s ability to process vast datasets also allows organizations to uncover patterns of bias and inequality, informing fairer hiring practices and inclusive service design. As Vietnam’s economy grows, leveraging AI for social progress will ensure that development is inclusive and benefits all layers of society.
Governance will also benefit from AI enhancements. As companies face increasing pressure to demonstrate transparency and accountability, AI provides tools that can strengthen internal controls and improve risk management. By analyzing vast data sets, AI can detect anomalies, flag potential compliance issues, and model future scenarios that help companies predict financial, operational, or reputational risks. Additionally, AI-powered automated reporting systems also reduce human error and ensure consistency across ESG disclosures.
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As AI becomes more integrated into decision-making processes, it also introduces new layers of complexity and risk that must be carefully managed to ensure responsible and comprehensive implementation.
One of the most pressing concerns is the environmental impact of AI. Training large models requires enormous computational power, increasing energy consumption and carbon emissions. Some of the world’s largest AI data centers under development are predicted to consume as much electricity as entire countries, raising serious questions about their compatibility with global climate goals.
In Vietnam, where green infrastructure is still maturing and energy transition is underway, unchecked expansion of energy-intensive AI systems could strain national resources and undermine progress towards net-zero goals. Additionally, the rapid pace of hardware innovation driven by the need for faster processors and more powerful GPUs is accelerating the retirement of electronic devices. Many AI systems lack transparency regarding their environmental impact, making it difficult for companies to assess and reduce their carbon footprint.
Social risks are equally pressing. AI can unintentionally reinforce inequalities if it is trained on biased or incomplete data. Unless accompanied by aggressive reskilling programs, automation is likely to eliminate jobs, particularly in low-skilled sectors. Privacy concerns are growing as AI systems collect and analyze vast amounts of personal data.
In Vietnam, where data protection laws are still developing, these risks could undermine public trust and slow digital adoption. Without ethical safeguards, AI could deepen social divides rather than bridge them.
Governance challenges surrounding AI are becoming increasingly complex, especially in high-stakes applications such as financial transactions and autonomous decision-making. Regulatory gaps make it difficult for companies to ensure accountability and ethical compliance. According to PwC’s AI Agents Survey, only 20 percent of executives expressed confidence in AI agents to manage financial tasks, and only 22 percent felt confident in using AI agents for autonomous employee interactions.
These concerns highlight the urgent need for responsible AI approaches that incorporate ethical safeguards, transparency, and human oversight. Vietnam lacks a comprehensive legal framework on AI ethics and responsibility, creating further uncertainty, especially in rapidly evolving sectors such as fintech and medical technology. Without clear guidelines, companies may struggle to balance innovation and responsibility, putting them at risk of reputational damage and regulation.
The demand for ethical leadership
There is growing recognition globally that ESG and responsible AI share common values. Both aim to reduce risk, build trust, and align business practices with societal expectations. By combining responsible AI and ESG, organizations can develop technology that reflects their values and supports long-term sustainability.
For example, smaller, easier-to-interpret AI models can reduce environmental impact while increasing transparency. AI can also identify opportunities to improve sustainability in areas such as data center cooling and logistics optimization.
For Vietnam, this convergence presents strategic opportunities. Companies that integrate AI into their ESG strategies can unlock new sources of value, differentiate themselves in the marketplace, and contribute to national development goals. But success requires more than technology: it takes leadership, collaboration, and a clear sense of purpose. AI can be the engine that drives ESG transformation, but only when guided by ethical principles and aligned with long-term goals.
For Vietnamese companies ready to take the next step, the path forward starts with clarity. Defining your ESG goals and understanding how AI can support them is essential. This collaboration ensures that investments in AI contribute directly to sustainability outcomes, rather than becoming disjointed experiments.
On top of that, reliable, secure, and interoperable data systems are the backbone of both AI and ESG. Therefore, companies must invest in platforms that enable accurate data collection, analysis, and reporting while protecting privacy and ensuring fairness.
Internal functions must also evolve. Building AI and ESG expertise requires training, hiring, and cross-functional collaboration. Ethical oversight mechanisms such as review boards and audit committees can help monitor the impact of AI and ensure compliance with new regulations.
No single company can survive this situation alone, so collaboration is key. Partnerships with regulators, academia, start-ups and industry peers can accelerate progress and foster innovation. Public-private initiatives in areas such as health care, agriculture, and energy offer promising models for scalable impact.
Finally, transparency should be the guiding principle. Stakeholders, from investors to consumers, expect honest and verifiable ESG disclosures. AI can enhance storytelling through real-time dashboards and visualizations, but the underlying data must be accurate and reliable.
Vietnamese companies are entering a new era defined by responsible innovation. By strategically integrating AI into ESG initiatives, companies can build resilience, strengthen stakeholder trust, and contribute to a more inclusive and sustainable economy. Decisions made today will shape Vietnam’s ability to thrive in the future, where technology and sustainability are not only compatible, but inseparable.
