Minister Vu Hai Quan: 'The source of changes is innovative thinking'
Speaking at the National Innovation Festival on the morning of October 4 in Hanoi, Minister of Science and Technology Vu Hai Quan said that the power of innovation does not start from modern technologies or start-up businesses, but from innovative thinking.
"It is the ability to look at a familiar problem from a new perspective, question things that seem obvious, find ways to do better and persevere in turning ideas into practical value," he said.
According to the Minister, this thinking can start from questions like "Is there a better way? What conditions need to be created? Where can we start?", instead of familiar old sayings. He cites Nokia, DeepSeek and Singapore to illustrate different approaches.
Nokia shows that past success does not guarantee future adaptability. Meanwhile, DeepSeek shows that technological competition depends not only on resources, but also on the quality of questions, research methods and testing capabilities. The fact that this business opens its model for the community to continue to use and develop, according to the Minister, also suggests a way to mobilize collective intelligence to accelerate innovation. From there, he believes that it is necessary to know how to innovate while being successful and dare to find new paths when conditions are still limited. At the national level, Singapore is an example when they have turned the limitations of nature into a driving force to find solutions.
"For individuals, ruts cause us to stop learning. For organizations, ruts cause experience to become rigid. For countries, ruts can slow down strategic decisions, causing development opportunities to pass by," he said.
Innovation becomes the capacity to act
Recalling the instructions of General Secretary and President To Lam on the driving role of innovation and the requirement for core technological autonomy, the companionship between technological innovation and institutional innovation, Minister Vu Hai Quan said these are suggestions to liberate creativity, while creating conditions for people, technology and organizations to move forward together.
According to the Minister, Vietnam is establishing great directions for a new era of development and that requirement requires innovative thinking.
He mentioned Vietnam's development model, which identifies science, technology, innovation, digital transformation and artificial intelligence as the main driving forces, calling this a fundamental transformation in how to create the country's development capacity.
"To implement those orientations, innovative thinking must become action capacity in the entire society," he emphasized.
Vietnam has a National Strategy on creative startups, aiming to stimulate the spirit of daring to do, taking risks and being tolerant of failure. According to the Minister, the depth of a start-up nation lies in its ability to nurture initiatives and create opportunities for them to develop.
Accordingly, young people with ideas need guides, research groups with technology need to connect businesses, and businesses with new products need opportunities to test and access the market. Organizations that have been operating for a long time need to maintain their entrepreneurial spirit through continuous learning and self-renewal.
To achieve those goals, according to the Minister, each subject has a specific task. People need lifelong learning and work improvement; businesses incorporate innovation into strategy, invest in people and research; Schools and institutes encourage new questions and create conditions for experimentation; Ministries, branches and localities must proactively innovate in policy formulation and implementation.
"The Ministry of Science and Technology must also start from itself: innovate the way of ordering, funding, evaluating and supporting the application of research results; bring policies closer to actual needs; use efficiency in serving people and businesses as a measure," he said.
Closing the speech, Minister Vu Hai Quan called on each person to choose one thing to change, one problem to solve and one initiative to implement, thereby creating new development capacity for the country.
"The 100-year vision needs to start with the right decisions today. Great aspirations need to be realized with specific, persistent, and effective work," he said.
The speech ended in applause from the hall.
National Innovation Day 2026 has the theme "Innovation - The driving force for development of the entire society". The response ceremony was held on October 4 at the National Convention Center, Hanoi, with many activities such as exhibitions, forums on science, technology, innovation and digital transformation, scientific innovation award ceremony, and exhibitions.
This is an opportunity to promote the connection of components in the innovation ecosystem, from management agencies, businesses, research institutes, universities to experts, financial institutions and investment funds; At the same time, enhance cooperation, share resources and form new initiatives and projects.
Luu Quy