Viet Nam has made history as the first country in Southeast Asia to enforce a comprehensive Artificial Intelligence law, with the regulation officially taking effect on March 1, 2026 — after being passed by the National Assembly of Viet Nam in December 2025 — a landmark moment amid the global surge of generative technologies like chatbots and AI image generators.
The law directly confronts the risks of generative AI — including misinformation, online abuse, and copyright infringement — with one of its key provisions requiring companies to clearly label all AI-generated content, including deepfakes, while users must be explicitly informed when interacting with an artificial agent rather than a real human.
In scope, the regulation is sweeping: it applies to developers, providers, and deployers of AI systems — covering both Vietnamese organizations and foreign entities operating in the country — meaning the entire lifecycle of any AI product falls under legal oversight, regardless of national origin.
Comprising 35 articles, the law is built around a "management-for-development" philosophy — emphasizing human oversight and control while closely mirroring the European Union's AI Act — with the Vietnamese government stating the regulation paves the way for the country to deeply integrate with international standards while preserving its digital sovereignty.
To encourage innovation alongside regulation, the government introduced a regulatory sandbox scheme allowing selected AI projects to receive exemptions or relaxed obligations through an accelerated evaluation process — signaling Viet Nam's intent to not just govern AI, but to actively lead its responsible development in the region.
