Vietnam is entering one of Southeast Asia’s most accelerated growth phases, with consumer behaviour transforming just as rapidly. Today, Vietnamese consumers are more discerning, more digital, and more trust-driven than ever: 62% are willing to pay more for reputable brands, 70% rely on short-form video for product discovery, and 63% shop through social platforms at least once a month.
Brands must stay culturally relevant, act in real time, and deliver personalised experiences that still scale.
To help marketers meet this shift, VML Vietnam has appointed Bao Tu as Chief Innovation Officer, accelerating the agency’s evolution into Vietnam’s first AI-first, end-to-end marketing partner. Bao’s mandate is to turn AI into a practical, business-driving growth engine across insight generation, creativity, production, influence and commerce.
“For marketers today, the question is no longer whether to use AI, but how to use it in ways that are meaningful, responsible, and tied directly to growth,” said Ha Nguyen, CEO, VML Vietnam. “Bao’s appointment is about giving our clients a practical path forward. He brings the ability to translate the hype around AI into concrete solutions that help brands work smarter, move faster, and build stronger connections with their customers in Vietnam and beyond.”
Bao’s Focus as Chief Innovation Officer: Turning AI into a Growth Advantage for Brands
Bao will focus on two core transformation priorities designed to help brands modernize their marketing and unlock AI-powered growth.
1. Reinventing how brands work: smarter, faster, AI-powered operations
By embedding AI across strategy, creative development, production and commerce, VML Vietnam will help brands achieve:
· Faster response from insight to market
· Adaptive, segment-specific content at scale
· Streamlined production that frees up time and budget for bigger ideas
“The brands that win will be the ones that can adapt in real time,” said Bao. “Our job is to power them with an AI engine behind the scenes – so decisions are faster, testing is constant, and every touchpoint stays consistent.”
2. Connecting Vietnam to a borderless creative and technology network
As Vietnamese brands compete more on the global stage, Bao will link clients to VML’s international AI, technology and creative ecosystem, unlocking:
· Direct access to global AI creative studios and production partners
· World-class tools and briefs for Vietnamese talent
· Work rooted in Vietnam’s cultural intuition but built for regional and global scale
A Hybrid Leader for a Hybrid Era
“Bao brings a deep technology foundation with a proven creative and innovation leadership background. That hybrid strength is exactly what we need to lead our AI transformation and help our teams and clients grow with confidence” – Ha Nguyen, CEO, VML Vietnam.
An EPITECH-trained computer scientist, he began his career building R&D systems and high-performance digital platforms before joining the creative industry. At FRED & FARID and later BETC Paris, he led breakthrough creative-tech projects earning 11 Cannes Lions and recognition from D&AD, Clio, One Show, Eurobest, and more.
At Accenture Song Paris, he advised global corporations on Web3, the future of commerce, and GenAI-powered experiences. He has also served as a Cannes Lions juror (2023) and a long-time SXSW Innovation Awards juror (2016–2023).
“For clients, Bao’s experience means they’re not just getting theory, they’re getting a partner who has actually built, shipped and scaled tech-driven ideas for some of the world’s most demanding brands,” Ha Nguyen added.
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