Brian Jeffrey
A Twitter account named GM AI Fraud has raised alarms regarding Hung Dinh, a Vietnamese entrepreneur, alleging his involvement in a cryptocurrency scandal linked to GM.AI, an AI initiative.
The situation has captured the attention of both the Vietnamese and global blockchain enthusiasts, particularly with the upcoming Token 2049 Week. Many have expressed concerns that this incident could tarnish the reputation of Vietnamese tech advances in the international arena.
What makes Hung Dinh notable in the cryptocurrency scene?
GM.AI operates on the Solana blockchain, utilizing artificial intelligence to facilitate and manage intricate transactions.
In March 2024, GM.AI raised 150,000 Solana (worth around $30 million). However, the project has faced backlash due to its delayed fulfillment of promises, leading to a surge of speculation.
Hung Dinh, also known as Dinh Viet Hung, is a prominent figure within Vietnam’s tech startup ecosystem.
He has a mixed reputation for launching various projects, including Rada Network, The Parallel, DeFi Horse, and Orbitau.
A resident of Nghe An, Dinh possesses a degree in economics but transitioned into the tech sector despite not having formal education in information technology. He initially pursued English at the Phan Boi Chau High School for the Gifted and later attended Hanoi Foreign Trade University.
Dinh began his entrepreneurial journey by developing usable online tools, achieving significant financial success early on. His creation, JoomIArt, attracted 50 million users globally, making him a millionaire by his early twenties.
In a 2021 interview with ICT News, he recounted the inception of JoomIArt.
“While working part-time during university and delving into e-commerce, I realized the huge potential for websites among businesses as the internet began to thrive,” he stated.
“Back then, only 10 percent of businesses worldwide had websites, mostly large corporations, while most small and medium enterprises lacked an online presence. There was a significant gap in technology solutions to easily provide websites for these companies, which motivated me to establish MamboTheme, later rebranded to JoomIArt,” he explained.
Dinh intentionally launched his business abroad, as he perceived minimal demand within Vietnam for JoomIArt’s offerings.
In 2015, he launched DesignBold, a straightforward design platform enabling non-professionals to create graphics, posing competition to the well-known Canva.
He then turned his focus towards investments and acquisitions, admitting to a nearly $2 million loss in failed Vietnamese startups.
DesignBold, just three days post beta-launch, garnered 700 orders totaling $27,339 in revenue. During its early days, DesignBold earned various accolades and was valued at an impressive $100 million by investors.
Despite its initial success, DesignBold ceased operations in 2021. Currently, he is investing efforts into blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies.
In a 2021 statement, Dinh highlighted the booming decentralized finance market as a significant opportunity, noting a remarkable increase in its total capitalization that year to over $2 trillion.
This growth represents an encouraging opportunity for Vietnamese tech firms to engage and secure investments, as he cautioned that delayed action could result in lost prospects to foreign businesses.
However, navigating the finance sector poses challenges. The fusion of technology and finance has spurred an unprecedented flow of capital.
“We are witnessing the emergence of a new class of billionaires. Should Bitcoin reach $200,000, it’s predicted that half of the world’s billionaires will be those who have invested in blockchain and cryptocurrencies,” he remarked.
