FPT, IBM, and Red Hat Propose Data Architecture for the Tax Sector

Recently, FPT, in collaboration with IBM Vietnam and Red Hat, co-hosted a workshop titled “Digital Data Architecture for the Tax Sector: Open Platform, Unified Data, and Readiness for Agentic AI.” The event brought together more than 70 leaders and key officials from the General Department of Taxation under the Ministry of Finance Vietnam.

The workshop served as an in-depth forum for dialogue between regulators and technology partners to shape data architecture and define a roadmap for applying artificial intelligence (AI) in the tax sector—an area facing strong digital transformation demands.

Mr. Pham Quang Toan, representing the Tax Department, shared key priorities for the sector in the coming period.

In his opening remarks, Mr. Pham Quang Toan, Head of the Technology, Digital Transformation and Automation Division at the General Department of Taxation, stated:

“The tax sector is undertaking several key missions, notably the comprehensive restructuring of its IT systems based on advanced technologies to meet innovation and science and technology application requirements in line with the Government’s direction. In this context, data plays a foundational role in deploying new systems and creating the basis for effective AI adoption. The tax sector aims to accelerate AI application on the foundation of robust, high-quality data platforms, thereby enhancing management efficiency and taxpayer services.”

Mr. Tran Phong Lam of FPT shared insights on FPT’s long-standing journey alongside the tax sector and reaffirmed its commitment to continue working closely with the industry moving forward.

Representing FPT, Mr. Tran Phong Lam, Director of Government Sector at FPT IS, FPT Corporation, shared that FPT has spent nearly three decades accompanying Vietnam’s tax sector in building and operating core IT systems. In recent years, as Vietnam introduced Resolution 57-NQ/TW and other key resolutions, FPT has continued to play a leading technology role, participating in consulting and implementing large-scale, complex projects. These include supporting the tax authority in transitioning to a two-tier local government model and integrating personal identification numbers to replace tax codes nationwide.

These changes have far-reaching impacts on the tax sector’s organizational structure, operational processes, and data systems, requiring synchronized implementation capabilities and extensive real-world experience.

“With nearly 30 years of experience accompanying the tax sector in modernizing national public finance systems, FPT and its leading technology partners are committed to continuing to support the tax sector in consulting, designing, and deploying modern system architectures—mastering core technologies, with data as the foundation and AI as the driving force for development,” Mr. Lãm emphasized.

According to him, the combination of technological capabilities, domain expertise, and close collaboration with partners will be key to helping the tax sector gradually build a modern management system, improve operational efficiency, and deliver tangible value to citizens, businesses, and society.

Experts from IBM presented technological concepts aimed at shaping the data architecture and defining a roadmap for artificial intelligence (AI) adoption in the tax sector.

From a technology partner perspective, Mr. Nguyen Phuc Cuong, representative of IBM Vietnam, noted that IBM aims to deepen its cooperation with the Digital Transformation Division and the tax sector—not only as a solution provider but also as a long-term advisory partner. He emphasized that effective AI deployment requires a unified data platform with seamless connectivity across systems, enabling process automation, productivity improvement, and enhanced taxpayer service quality.

During the workshop, IBM experts presented a modern data architecture based on the Lakehouse model, which unifies structured, semi-structured, and unstructured data on a single platform while ensuring fast data access for analytics and operations. In addition, an enterprise AI architecture was introduced, featuring a layered approach spanning data, systems, integration, APIs, AI agents, and digital assistants. This approach enables organizations to build a structured AI implementation roadmap, avoiding fragmented and inefficient adoption.

Mr. Nguyen Quoc Thanh, Senior Solution Architect at Red Hat, shared a new approach to system operations by integrating AI directly into the operating system platform.

From an infrastructure standpoint, a unified storage solution was proposed to connect existing data systems into a shared platform, allowing applications to access a single data source without duplication. This not only reduces investment costs but also enhances processing performance—an essential factor in big data and AI use cases.

Meanwhile, Red Hat introduced a new approach to system operations by integrating AI directly into the operating platform. Tools such as LightSpeed enable incident analysis, recommend solutions, and support real-time intelligent operations, helping organizations shift from reactive to proactive system management.

The workshop offered multi-dimensional perspectives on technology trends and opened up new directions for technological development in the tax sector.

Concluding the workshop, Mr. Pham Quang Toan highly appreciated the insights shared by FPT and its partners, while emphasizing the need to translate strategic directions into practical implementation solutions. He noted that the tax sector requires not only a long-term AI vision but also concrete use cases that can be deployed in the short term—within approximately six months—to quickly generate tangible value.

AI applications are expected to focus on automating business processes, detecting fraud, supporting tax officers in task execution, and improving system operational efficiency.

He also stressed the importance of ensuring the stability of the tax sector’s IT systems—large-scale, highly sensitive systems that directly impact citizens and businesses. Accordingly, AI adoption should aim at forecasting and preventing incidents, rather than merely responding after issues arise.

“AI must be applied in practice and deliver concrete results, rather than remaining at the level of orientation or formality,” he stated.

The workshop not only provided multi-dimensional perspectives on technology trends but also opened up opportunities for deeper collaboration between the tax sector and technology partners in the future. With a modern data foundation and a clear AI roadmap, the tax sector is steadily moving toward building an intelligent, transparent, and efficient management system that meets the demands of the digital economy and digital society.