In 2010, Mr. Kinh became part of FPT Japan. Integrating his personal passion for automobiles with catching market trends to drive business development, in March 2015, he proposed the establishment of a specialized strategic software unit in Automotive to the FSOFT Board of Directors.

“For many years, FSOFT has been expanding without developing deeply, and labor productivity has stagnated for the passing years. I believe that addressing this issue requires a more focused approach within specific domains,” remarked Mr. Kinh.

In early 2016, FGA (FPT Global Automotive) was inaugurated with the vision of placing FPT on the global technology landscape with comprehensive solutions.

Despite being new, FGA swiftly emerged as FSOFT’s only domain that could compete on the global scale. Notably, this marked the first milestone in the chronicle of FSOFT where a true domain-specialized unit was established and comprised of Automotive experts.

AUTOSAR, VnV (Verification and Validation), SEA (Solution Engineering Automotive), và GUX (Global UI/UX). Nhiệm vụ của các đơn vị này là xây dựng và phát triển sản phẩm/ giải pháp cũng như xây dựng nguồn lực và năng lực cạnh tranh (competency), hỗ trợ cho khối Delivery.

In the next 5 years, FGA reaped many “sweet fruits” when they became a strategic partner of “big” OEMs (original equipment manufacturers), signed many million-dollar contracts, and set foot in emerging auto markets like Japan, America, Europe…

In 2021, following the orientation of in-depth development to create competitiveness and sustainable growth for FSOFT, FGA merged with MFG, establishing a new unit called GAM (Global Automotive Manufacturing). Becoming a strategic partner of 20 manufacturing companies in the world’s Top 100 is GAM’s top goal.

In 2022, GAM took a strategic step to increase their “coverage” in the US – the most dynamic market in the Automotive and Manufacturing segments. From the end of 2022 and the first half of 2023, GAM focused on developing electric vehicle projects with new customers in the US to affirm that Vietnamese engineers can make a difference and change the world.
Drastically transforming and breaking through, at the end of 2023, FA was born after mobilizing resources from GAM, GST, IVS and OB units including Japan, Korea, China, America and Europe. Along with CEO Nguyen Duc Kinh, the FA’s Board of Directors is also accompanied by Chief Operations Officer (COO) Ta Tran Minh, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong and Chief Delivery Officer (CDO) Vu Tuan Manh.

From 2024, FSOFT has included “Billion Dollar Domain” in the 5 GIGA target to implement.

FA inherits the FPT genome to design all activities around 3 core values including: Pioneer, Speed, and Integrity. The company’s mission is to become a business that actively contributes to the development of a smart mobile society.

FA’s Board of Directors determines that the company’s vision is to be a pioneering enterprise in the SDV (Software-Defined Vehicles) technology segment, helping to accelerate the process of forming a new era of smart mobility while still ensuring the highest standards of safety and outstanding experience.

FA’s operation system is divided into centers for administration. In the Business Control Center (BCC), in addition to business units in key markets, FA also has special units divided by core competencies including CDC (Cockpit Domain Controller), AUTOSAR, VnV (Verification and Validation), SEA (Solution Engineering Automotive), and GUX (Global UI/UX). The mission of these units is to build and develop products/solutions as well as build resources and competitiveness, supporting the Delivery Centre.

The Delivery Control Center (DCC) includes 10 strategic software centers, located in Hanoi – Da Nang – Ho Chi Minh City, divided by technology and customer segments including: AES (AUTOSAR Engineering Services), AIS (Automotive Integrated Solution), APS (Automotive Platform Solution/Service), DAT (Differentated Automotive Technology), IVI (In-Vehicle Infotainment), ESE (Embedded Systems Engineering), ADS (Automotive Digital Services) and GET (Global Engineering Technologies).
The Global Delivery Center (GDC) includes delivery centers in India, Mexico, Romania, China and the Philippines. GPS and SPC are functional units/departments, in charge of human resources, resource development, communication, and business planning, finance – accounting…

In 2024, FA sets an OKR of $201 million revenue. In the long term, the company will triple their sales growth after 3 years. By 2030, FA will be one of the two largest P&Ls of FSOFT and become a world-class automotive engineering consulting company with billion-dollar revenue.

As a pioneer enterprise in a new playground, FSOFT has approached successful models from “gurus”.

“Organizing domain-based activities is the most used method at the world’s leading IT service providers such as: Capgemini, TCS (Tata Consulting Services), Cognizant, Infosys, Wipro, DXC… Not only does it help companies grow rapidly, but this model is also considered a factor in winning bids for huge and long-term projects. A meaningful domain is one with billions of dollars in revenue,” Mr. Kinh said.

Designing our own path, FSOFT focuses on market development and strengthening Automotive Engineering technology capacity.

Recognizing that Automotive is a typical global industry, one of FSOFT’s important steps is to build a “base” in the capitals of the world’s automotive industry such as Japan, Korea, China, the US, and Europe.

In early 2024, FA opened nearshore in Pune, India to develop the market and explore new opportunities.

Pune is considered one of the world’s leading automobile manufacturing centers with the presence of reputable car manufacturers such as Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp… Setting up a new office here will help FA increase resources globally to quickly respond to the constantly changing needs of the auto industry as well as optimize the values offered to customers in terms of deployment speed, scale, and product development efficiency.

It is expected that by 2026, FA’s office in India will reach 500 employees, mainly highly specialized technology engineers with comprehensive capabilities.

Promoting operations in nearshore locations such as the Philippines, Romania, Mexico, and India, FA also takes advantage of domestic resources (offshore) to provide the most effective services to customers (bestshore).

In China – the world’s largest automobile and electric vehicle market, FSOFT has offices in Nanning and Shanghai to get closer to major customers in the Automotive and Semiconductor segments.

In the United States, despite comprising only approximately 19% of total sales, the significance lies in its role as the “technology cradle” of the world—a hub of talent and economic innovations. By selecting the US as their headquarter, FA demonstrates a pioneering determination to becoming “an eagle flying straight into the eye of the storm, conquering new heights.”

Along with exploiting the potential from the CINEX program (which welcomes jobs from China and India), FA’s development strategy involves a strategic exchange with chip manufacturers, industry giants, and OEMs in key markets, considered as “prescription transfer” (Shinkansen).

Furthermore, FA focuses on mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities, steering the global customer network to accelerate time to market, enhance competitiveness, and elevate product/solution quality, all geared toward the ultimate objective of establishing a prominent presence in the global market of SDV.

In addition to collaborations with leading chip and AI companies worldwide, FA is committed to recruiting high-caliber international talents to make a substantial impact. To proactively manage resources, the company prioritizes the training and development of human capital. This includes a strategic partnership with FPT University (FU) to establish Vietnam’s first “Automotive Software Technology” department, involving expanded investments in labs, educational support, and active participation in scientific research projects alongside esteemed universities.

CEO of FA Nguyen Duc Kinh said: “Competitors invest very heavily in nearshore, partnership and M&A. The introduction of FA is FPT’s affirmation in promoting those areas.”

FA’s main customer base are OEM and tier-1 companies in the world such as Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Volvo, Panasonic, LG… and semiconductor chip manufacturing companies such as NXP, Renesas… FPT also is positioned in the group of Major Contenders with many big names such as Infosys, Tata Technologies, Cognizant, NTT DATA… according to Everest Group’s recent announcement on ACES (Automated, Connected, Electric, and Shared Vehicles) for with 26 automotive software suppliers globally.

Automotive refers to mechanical design/analysis (CAD/CAE) and design, development of hardware/software in the car (in-car), outside the car (out-car)… Hardware/software systems The vehicle includes car navigation, entertainment system (media/audio/video), display (electronic speedometer, light symbols, air conditioning…), and other devices. Vehicle control systems run on ECUs (Electronic Control Units) such as BCM (Body Control Management), ADAS, gateway, suspension system,… A modern car has from 80 to 120 ECUs. The amount of software in cars today has reached over 150 million lines of code, 20 times the software size of the most modern Boeing 787 aircraft.

If in the past, the factors that determined the differences between cars were the engine, gearbox, transmission, steering wheel, and fuel… today, a car is like a “phone with 4 cake”.

90% of a car’s innovation lies in the software. 100% of vehicles will be Cloud connected. Cars are no longer the sacrosanct territory of Ford, Daimler, Toyota, Nissan… but are an opportunity for all technology companies and solution providers, from Tesla to Google, from BYD to Xiaomi… and even FPT.

Realizing the open future in the automotive software industry, FA is committed to investing strongly in this field.

Since March 2017, FGA has implemented A-SPICE certification (software improvement process assessment model issued by the HIS Working Group association of automobile manufacturers including Audi, BWM, DaimlerChrysler, Fiat, Porsche, Volkswagen, Volvo) to invest in research and build an automobile quality management system. After 9 months of implementation, overcoming difficult and stressful tests with Exida’s experts, FGA has obtained A-SPICE level 3 certification. With 5 being the highest level, there are many in the world. Few companies reach A-SPICE levels 4 and 5.

Achieving A-SPICE level 3 marks a significant milestone for FGA in the automotive software industry, paving the way for further advancements. Building upon this foundation, FGA sets the higher objective: ISO 26262, the international standard for functional safety in the motor vehicle manufacturing industry.

ISO 26262 defines functional safety for automotive electrical and electronic systems throughout their life cycle, encompassing development, production, operation, service, and warning alarm. This certification offers essential guidance and requirements for ensuring the functional safety of such systems in modern road vehicles.

Recently, many car companies have focused on researching and integrating modern technology as well as the best utilities for users. Electronic features are also emphasized for safety, in particular, functional safety of electrical and electronic systems is considered a solution for the automotive industry’s breakthrough development.

FSOFT currently holds over 20 ISO 26262 certificates, with FPT engineers playing a pivotal role in assisting renowned global car manufacturers in meeting this rigorous standard. Mr. Kinh proudly notes, “This marks the first time that a Vietnamese company has consulted and provided Engineering services for an automobile manufacturing company to achieve this super difficult certificate”.

According to Mr. Kinh, the global auto industry is forecast to spend more than $536 billion/year by 2030 when shifting to new types of transmission vehicles other than traditional internal combustion engines. “With such a large market scale, based on FA’s foundation and potential, reaching $1 billion by 2030 is not unrealistic,” he affirmed.

But to speed up the implementation of the goal, he said: “The FA needs to drastically carry out M&A in the next 2 years to create solid momentum for the following years.” In addition, the company also focuses on developing core competencies in CDC, AUTOSAR, and IP solutions related to automotive software systems.

When located in hot car areas, FA has to compete with many big competitors. However, FA owns the “rare capital” that few companies have when they separate. That is a strong Presale and Delivery team with more than 4,000 people stretching from OB to nearshore, plus a business base of 119 customers.

Determining that domain building is a long-term process that can last decades, FA is determined to create different productivity. “Domain is industry. There are all kinds of jobs in the industry. FA chooses the industry, not the profession. In the long term, overall productivity for the industry will increase,” Mr. Kinh said.

In addition to billion-dollar revenue by 2030, one of FA’s other important goals is to increase the proportion of sales coming from OEM to 50%.

“Any software company with billion-dollar sales is admirable, especially when it has a world-class, billion-dollar industry. Because this will help tens of millions of Vietnamese youth and businesses around the world realize that: Vietnam is a world-class force in Engineering”, CEO of FA commented.

Author: Tô Ngà

Designer: Hà Duyên