The role of books in the age of AI

AI, short videos, and social media are making people consume information faster and less patient with longer content. According to Mr. Tran Chi Dat, Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the 2026 Science, Technology, Innovation and Digital Transformation Book Award, this context actually makes books increasingly important.

“In the age of AI and the information explosion, books help readers develop depth of thinking, the ability to systematize knowledge, and critical thinking skills. This is difficult to achieve if one only accesses brief information on social media,” he said, adding that this is one of the reasons why the Ministry of Science and Technology is organizing a separate award for books on science, technology, innovation, and digital transformation for the first time.

Vietnam has many book awards, but lacks a dedicated award for science and technology – a field that plays a crucial role in the country’s development. The organizers hope that the award will not only honor books, authors, translators, and publishers, but also contribute to promoting the scientific knowledge ecosystem, bringing science closer to the public, especially young people.

Launched on April 1st, the award received 329 entries, a “positive sign” for the science and technology book market. Besides publishers, research institutes, universities, and technology companies, independent authors are also beginning to show more interest in systematizing knowledge into books. Many topics once considered “too specialized,” such as AI, big data, digital transformation, and the digital economy, are now becoming common concerns of society.

However, according to Mr. Dat, technology books still face a major challenge: competing with the speed and reach of social media. He argues that today’s users are accustomed to receiving information quickly and visually through videos, podcasts, or social platforms, while scientific books require longer reading times and more systematic thinking.

In fact, many books are highly academic, dry in style, and difficult for the general reader to access. “The problem isn’t that books have lost their role, but that the way books are made needs to change,” he emphasized.

According to him, scientific books not only need to be accurate and in-depth, but also visually appealing, easily accessible to different reader groups, and connected to digital platforms and online communities to increase their reach.

Many tech leaders and talented engineers choose to share their knowledge through blogs, seminars, or social media instead of writing books, as these channels have a rapid rate of dissemination. However, knowledge on social media is often short-lived and scattered, while books are valuable for their systematic nature and long-term preservation. “A single post can have a quick impact, but a good book can influence for years, even generations,” emphasized the Director of the Science and Technology Publishing House.

In reality, Vietnam has many valuable books on science and technology, but not many works have had a widespread impact on the community. This is partly due to the small market for science books, as well as the lack of a sufficiently strong ecosystem to transform science books into products with significant social impact.

He cited Thomas Kuhn’s * The Structure of Scientific Revolutions * as an example, showing that a scientific book not only conveys knowledge but can also influence thinking and policy.

However, through the submitted works, Vietnamese science and technology books have shown many positive changes, becoming increasingly closer to practical applications. Many works no longer serve only the academic community but are beginning to focus on applications in management, education, production, or medicine. Conversely, a major limitation remains the dry, highly specialized way of conveying knowledge, lacking appeal to the general public, especially young people.

The Ministry of Science and Technology hopes that the award will contribute to motivating scientists, experts, and publishers to invest more seriously in science and technology books, thereby enabling knowledge to reach businesses and everyday life, not just laboratories or conferences.

Trong Dat

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