Deputy PM Lê Tiến Châu Opens GMC 2026 in Hanoi With a Call for AI Standards in Universities
Deputy Prime Minister Lê Tiến Châu used the opening of the Global MOOC and Online Education Conference 2026 (GMC 2026) in Hanoi on November 3 to urge universities to rebuild teaching around artificial intelligence while keeping people in charge of the technology, VietnamPlus reported. Vietnam National University, Hanoi (VNU) and China’s Tsinghua University co-hosted the event, themed on reallocating intelligence and transforming education for human and AI collaboration, which drew close to 400 university leaders, experts and representatives of international education bodies.
He set out four directions. Universities should overhaul curricula, teaching, assessment and governance, build digital learning materials and train students to use AI to standard while developing critical thinking and creativity. Teachers and learners should be at the centre of the change, with teachers mastering new tools while still guiding values and character. AI must be used responsibly, safely, transparently and humanely, which he said means Vietnam should soon complete standards for AI in teaching, research and academic assessment that track international practice, protect the data and rights of teachers and students, and finish a controlled testing mechanism for new education technology. Finally, international cooperation should support developing countries and disadvantaged learners so AI narrows education gaps rather than widening them.
VNU director Bùi Thế Duy said that since the 2025 intake an introductory module on digital technology and AI applications has been compulsory for all full-time undergraduates in every field. The university is also using AI to produce learning materials and personalise study as it pursues a place among Asia’s top 100 universities by 2030.
What it means in practice
The Global MOOC and Online Education Alliance also released a 2026 index of digital development in higher education covering 101 countries, which for the first time measures how far AI agents are built into teaching; Vietnam is among 44 countries scoring between 50 and 70 points. The university push mirrors moves in schools, where the education ministry has drafted a national AI education framework and a free platform and companies are reaching teenagers through initiatives such as the free AI or Behind contest for high school students.
What to watch is when the promised standards for AI in academic assessment are published, whether other universities follow VNU in making AI coursework compulsory, and what joint projects emerge before GMC 2027, which will be hosted by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology.