Vietnam and India Strengthen Incubator Linkages to Advance Deep-Tech Cooperation

<p style="text-align: justify;">Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan held a working session with the I-Hub Foundation for Cobotics (IHFC) in India on the afternoon of 5 May, with a view to exploring practical models that connect research with the market and support the development of a core-technology startup ecosystem.</p>

During the meeting, the Minister and the Vietnamese delegation discussed IHFC's operating model as a non-profit platform that serves as a bridge between the Government, research institutions and businesses. The foundation is also involved in research and development, startup incubation and human resource training.

IHFC focuses on cobotics, or collaborative robotics between humans and machines, with applications in healthcare, agriculture, defence and services. By early 2026, the foundation had implemented a number of projects, supported multiple startups and trained around 75,000 people.

Drawing on IHFC's experience, Minister Vu Hai Quan proposed several concrete areas of cooperation.

First, the two sides could work together to organise joint workshops among major university incubators in the region, including those from Singapore, the Republic of Korea, Japan and India, to exchange experience and best practices.

Second, stronger linkages should be promoted across startup ecosystems, particularly among innovation centres, enterprises and startups.

Third, the two sides could coordinate in entrepreneurship training, high-tech workforce development and the gradual formation of joint startup models among countries.

These proposals are expected to lay the groundwork for a regionally connected innovation network, contributing to the development of Vietnam's strategic technologies./.