Vinmec’s bet on robotics comes with a bigger goal: putting Vietnam on the surgical map 

On the morning of June 27, 2026, five Vinmec hospitals across Vietnam lit up simultaneously on a single screen. From Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang to Can Tho, Vinmec Healthcare System officially activated what it describes as the country’s first nationally integrated robotic surgery network: nine platforms, one coordinated system.

Building more than a robotics program

Vietnam’s robotic surgery story began modestly. When Vinmec Times City introduced the Da Vinci surgical system over a decade ago, it became the country’s first private robotic surgery center. The technology, previously confined to elite hospitals in Singapore, the United States, and Japan, had arrived in Vietnam’s private sector.

What Vinmec is building now is categorically different. The new network deploys Da Vinci Xi, Hugo RAS, and Toumai MT-1000 for general surgery; ROSA, MISSO, and CORI across orthopedics; and StealthStation S8, Mazor X Stealth Edition, and the O-arm with StealthStation O2 for neurosurgery and spine. They are all operating under a unified clinical framework with Vinmec Times City as the coordination hub.

Prof. Tran Trung Dung, CEO of Vinmec Healthcare System shared Vinmec’s vision.

“A single robot can contribute to successful surgeries,” Prof. Tran Trung Dung, MD, PhD, CEO of Vinmec Healthcare System noted. “But only an ecosystem can create sustainable development of robotic surgery.”

The 3-in-1 model

Central to Vinmec’s approach is what it calls a “3-in-1” framework: Personalisation, Automation, and Standardisation. Every patient receives an individualised surgical plan through preoperative 3D reconstruction and simulation; benefits from AI-enabled robotic assistance during the procedure itself; and is treated according to internationally standardised clinical protocols.

Assoc. Prof. Pham Van Binh, Director of the Vinmec High-Tech Robotic Surgery Center Network, frames it in terms of patient outcomes rather than technological capability. 

“What patients care about is not how advanced a robot is, but whether they are safer, experience less pain, and recover faster after surgery. That is the philosophy behind our “3-in-1” model.”, he stated.

The clinical record already supports that argument. 

In June 2025, a nine-year-old boy who had endured dozens of daily seizures for nearly five years underwent Vietnam’s first robotic-guided pediatric epilepsy surgery at Vinmec Central Park, using the AutoGuide system with sub-millimeter electrode precision. Within a month, his seizure frequency had decreased significantly. Months later, a 63-year-old patient in Da Nang was walking hours after Central Vietnam’s first AI-integrated robotic knee replacement via CORI. 

Vinmec invests in robotics and advanced technologies to enhance clinical capabilities. 

Vietnam’s next decade

The longer arc of Vinmec’s ambition extends beyond treatment. Assoc. Prof. Binh envisions the network evolving into a regional training and research center, where young Vietnamese physicians gain early access to advanced technologies and where clinical outcomes feed directly back into scientific research.

Alongside the launch of its robotic surgery network, Vinmec established the Robotic Surgery Patient Support Fund, backed by nearly VND 300 billion (around USD 11.4 million) in funding from Vingroup to expand access to advanced robotic surgery for patients.

“Our goal is to provide patients in Vietnam with access to the most advanced surgical innovations while progressively positioning Vietnam as a regional destination for high-tech healthcare and precision surgery,” Prof. Dung said.

With Vinmec at the forefront, Vietnam is moving beyond adoption toward shaping the future of surgical innovation.