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On the morning of September 27, 2025, International University (IU) – Vietnam National University, Ho Chi Minh City organized the September Public Talk Program with the theme “AI, Big Data, and their Applications.” The lecture featured an engaging presentation by Professor Duong Nguyen Vu – Vice President and Scientific Director of the VinUni-NTU Generative AI Research Center.

Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu – Keynote Speaker of the September Public Talk

With the goal of developing high-quality training programs that are constantly updated and ably apply advanced scientific/technological knowledge, International University regularly organizes seminars, conferences, and public talks which aims at providing useful information to a wide range of participants. Every year, the Public Talk Program is held for high school students as well as students from universities and colleges in Ho Chi Minh City and neighboring provinces, consistently attracting great interest from students and teachers from high schools alike.

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nguyen Ngoc Duy Phuong – Head of the International Relations Office at International University – shared: “The series of public talks organized by International University in 2025 began in June and will continue until the end of the year, featuring many interesting topics presented by faculty members from various Departments as well as renowned guest speakers from outside the university. In June, July, and August, we successfully held three programs with the participation of nearly 450 high school students. This September, we continue with the lecture on the theme ‘AI, Big Data, and their Applications.’ In the following months, we will continue the series with diverse themes, each carrying a unique message, such as ‘Vietnamese Youth and Climate Change Response,’ ‘Technology Applications in Learning English Skills’ (October), and ‘Personal Financial Management’ (December). All of these aim to provide students with accurate insights into different fields of study, helping them find a direction that aligns with their passions and capabilities”.0940: A student from Hoang Hoa Tham High School asking a question to Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu.

Students from Hoang Hoa Tham High School also shared their perspectives on AI.

Implementing the September program – the opening month of the new academic year – we devoted time and effort to organizing this engaging theme with the hope of bringing students inspiring stories about AI and Big Data, one of the most fascinating topics in today’s science and daily life. The September program was carried out with the support and preparation of the Department of Physics – which currently offers the Aerospace Engineering program.

With a modern, internationally standardized curriculum taught entirely in English, the Department of Physics has been providing high-quality human resources for many domestic and international organizations in the field of Aerospace Engineering.

More than 160 students from Hoang Hoa Tham High School visited and received guidance at the International University’s laboratory system on the morning of September 27, 2025.

After more than 80 minutes of visiting several key laboratories, over 160 students from Hoang Hoa Tham High School and more than 30 students from the International University had the opportunity to listen to the keynote speaker of the September Public Lecture, Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu – Vice President and Scientific Director of the VinUni-NTU Generative AI Research Center.

Not only did Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu outline the big picture of Artificial Intelligence (AI), but he also conveyed important messages, especially emphasizing the need for critical thinking and cybersecurity awareness among young people to help them confidently master technology.

At the beginning of his talk, Prof. Vu addressed one of the biggest questions today: Can AI truly be creative? His answer was “Yes.” He affirmed that modern Generative AI has gone beyond simply synthesizing existing information—it is now capable of creating entirely new knowledge, even surpassing human limitations.

A striking example is AlphaGeometry from Google DeepMind, an AI system that successfully solved highly complex International Olympiad-level geometry problems by self-learning and developing entirely novel problem-solving strategies. Prof. Vu also shared a personal experience of using AI (specifically Grok by xAI) for brainstorming. Remarkably, the AI proposed a groundbreaking idea: applying a public-private partnership model to aviation infrastructure investment—an unprecedented approach in that field.

 According to him, the foundation of such creativity lies in AI’s ability to interconnect and apply knowledge from one domain to solve problems in another.

The support of AI has also been accelerating the pace of scientific research. The professor noted: “In the past, a PhD student might spend 6–9 months on a literature review; now, that work can be completed in mere hours or days..” Similarly, the process of formulating a scientific hypothesis has been shortened from many months to just about a week.

Students from Hoang Hoa Tham High School also shared their perspectives on AI during the program held on the morning of September 27, 2025, organized by the International University.

However, great power also comes with significant responsibilities and challenges. Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu particularly emphasized that critical thinking is the most important “shield” to protect humans from being passively influenced by AI. He warned that blindly trusting every output provided by AI would turn us into “slaves” of technology.

The professor used a metaphor: knowledge is like an “iceberg,” with the part AI displays being only the small tip visible above the surface. To truly master knowledge, young people must cultivate the habit of always asking questions, examining issues through multiple lenses—from personal, family, and teacher perspectives—in order to dive into the submerged portion of the iceberg, where the essence of knowledge lies.

In addition, he raised strong concerns about personal data security. While AI can serve as a “friend” to confide in, every piece of information shared may be collected. He advised users to actively check the settings of AI applications and enable privacy protection modes to ensure that personal data is not exploited for commercial purposes or model training without their knowledge.

Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu emphasized how today’s young people can master AI and other technologies in order to take control of the game.

The final and most important message Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu conveyed was a call for young people to become the true “game changers” in today’s digital era. “The future does not belong to those who merely know how to use AI, but to those who understand it, control it, and shape its development. By equipping themselves with sharp critical thinking and strong awareness of data security, Vietnamese youth can confidently unlock the limitless potential of AI to serve the advancement of society,” Prof. Duong Nguyen Vu affirmed.