Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) are no longer confined to pilots or standalone use cases. They are increasingly embedded into inspection workflows, asset management, construction oversight, agriculture, and emergency response. As adoption expands, regulatory scrutiny and operational risk rise in parallel. In this environment, UAV readiness becomes less about flight capability and more about whether organizations can operate safely, compliantly, and at scale.
FPT approaches UAV development through this lens: treating UAVs as an enterprise capability rather than a collection of devices. The focus is on building operating models that integrate standards, training, security, and system interoperability so UAV programs can move beyond experimentation and withstand real-world deployment conditions.
Global UAV value is shifting from devices to operating models
The global UAV market is experiencing rapid growth, with a compound annual growth rate of over 15%. Currently valued at USD 25–30 billion in 2026, the market is expected to reach USD 128 billion by 2030 and could rise to USD 700 billion by 2035. Asia-Pacific is expected to lead in UAV volume, driven by urbanization and smart-city initiatives, while North America and Europe are at the forefront of regulatory innovation and high-value applications, such as infrastructure monitoring, unmanned traffic management, and drone delivery.
Across regions, a consistent pattern is emerging. Value creation is moving away from individual platforms toward repeatable, governed operating models. UAVs are also transforming industries. In energy and utilities, UAVs reduce inspection times from days to hours, enhancing safety and lowering costs. In agriculture, they enable precision spraying and crop monitoring, improving yields. In logistics, UAVs support faster deliveries, even to remote areas. In public safety, drones provide aerial views to help emergency teams respond more quickly.
Vietnam’s UAV roadmap and ecosystem
Science and technology, innovation, and digital transformation are identified by Vietnam as critical breakthroughs and core drivers of a renewed development model, supporting the country’s ambition to become an upper-middle-income developing economy by 2030 and a high-income developed nation by 2045. In this context, the designation of 11 national strategic technology domains highlights their foundational role across economic development, national defense, and security, underscoring Vietnam’s commitment to technological self-reliance.
UAVs have emerged as a strategic priority within Vietnam's digital economy agenda. National policymakers have characterized this as a "golden time" to enter the global UAV market, launching the Vietnam Aerospace, Space, and Unmanned Aerial Vehicles initiative (UAVS VN) to build a national innovation ecosystem. The country's targets are ambitious: entry into the $700 billion global low-altitude aviation sector by 2035, generating $10 billion in domestic UAV revenue, and creating one million new jobs.
This ambition is supported by governance mechanisms. Decree 288/2025 introduces structured requirements for UAV operations, including permitting, Remote ID mandates, and designated corridors for beyond visual line-of-sight flights. Regulatory sandboxes and public procurement programs are intended to enable controlled experimentation while maintaining operational oversight. Vietnamese technology companies, including FPT, Viettel, and CT Group, are contributing through investments in manufacturing, R&D, and ecosystem development.
Vietnam’s UAV momentum is also tightly linked to international demand. As ASEAN nations scale smart‑city and logistics applications, Japan expands industrial automation, and the US and EU push forward with advanced regulatory frameworks like FAA Part 107 and U‑space, Vietnam is positioned to plug into these markets with compatible, standards‑aligned capabilities. Its combination of R&D competitiveness, policy responsiveness, and population‑scale testing environments allows Vietnam, and companies like FPT to support cross‑border pilots, technology transfers, and ecosystem collaboration across these global innovation hubs.
FPT’s approach and focus on UAV
FPT recently announced its strategic focus on unmanned aerial vehicles.
Standards and compliance
As a founding contributor to the Vietnam Low Altitude Economy Alliance (LAEP), chaired by FPT CEO Nguyen Van Khoa, FPT is helping shape the institutional foundations of UAV deployment. The alliance’s mission is to translate evolving regulations into operational clarity, enabling enterprises to scale UAV programs across industries with confidence.
By aligning with international frameworks such as FAA and EU U-space standards, and through partnerships with global organizations, including JUIDA, FPT helps bridge local regulatory requirements with global best practices. The goal is not compliance for its own sake, but predictability—reducing ambiguity so enterprises can invest, deploy, and expand UAV operations across borders.
LAEP’s recent partnership signing ceremony with JUIDA
Training and talent development
FPT views talent development as a key driver of UAV adoption. The company invests in upskilling engineers and creating UAV-focused programs through FPT University and global partnerships, ensuring a steady pipeline of operators and engineers who can execute UAV programs with safety and enterprise-grade scale. FPT’s AI-augmented workforce across 30 countries, supported by offshore, onshore, and nearshore delivery models, provides a competitive edge in scaling talent to meet global demand.
FPT University produces over 2,000 AI and data graduates annually and collaborates with nearly 200 global organizations to train engineers in emerging technologies like semiconductors, automotive, and UAV systems. This talent ecosystem, aligned with FPT’s focus on AI, semiconductors, and technologies like quantum computing, ensures a continuous supply of UAV-ready professionals, poised to support the company’s global growth and technology integration needs.
Security and technology integration
Security is non-negotiable for UAV operations. FPT embeds cybersecurity into every solution by leveraging its Information Security Management System, which includes policies, procedures, and guidelines to protect data assets. The company uses advanced security testing tools, code, container, and infrastructure security. These practices ensure UAV platforms are resilient against cyber threats, safeguarding both operational integrity and public trust.
FPT’s UAV strategy is built on integration, not isolated deployments. By combining strengths in AI, cloud, and IoT, FPT aims to deliver UAV platforms that connect seamlessly with enterprise systems, turning UAV data into actionable insights and embedding outcomes into existing workflows, from maintenance planning to monitoring and reporting.
FPT's deployment of an AI-powered drone solution for pipeline inspections at an Indonesian oil and gas company demonstrates this approach in practice. The system accelerated inspection speeds by 20x, processing images in seconds rather than minutes, while maintaining 95% accuracy in detecting corrosion and defects. By replacing manual inspections with automated monitoring, the solution reduced labor costs, minimized operational downtime, and established a scalable framework for continuous infrastructure oversight—directly improving both safety outcomes and regulatory compliance.
Ecosystem collaboration to accelerate adoption
FPT is accelerating UAV adoption through strategic partnerships and close engagement with local authorities, translating ambition into joint pilots, smart-city initiatives, and industrial deployments that can scale.
The company has also broken ground on its Artificial Intelligence Research Center in Gia Lai Province, which features a dedicated UAV research and testing area. This center is designed to connect UAV development with broader AI and data infrastructure, supporting both innovation and workforce development.
Through the co-creation of capabilities such as UAV traffic management, compliance dashboards, and sector-ready applications, FPT is expected to play a key role in strengthening Vietnam’s UAV ecosystem while reinforcing its position as a credible partner for global UAV programs.
