steamroller

If we stick to the field of technology, Japan has missed two very important trains that it should not have missed: the manufacturing of cutting-edge semiconductors and the development of models of artificial intelligence (AI) pointers. In its “Summary of the Strategy for the Revitalization of Semiconductors in Japan” of 2024, the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry recognized the decline of its chip industry. Furthermore, Fumio Kishida, former Prime Minister of Japan, has declared openly that his country depends excessively on the US in the critical scenario of AI. Be that as it may, Japan wants to make up for lost time. And Fujitsu is one of its best assets to regain its former glory. In fact, this company has announced, according to Nikkei Asiawhich is going to develop cutting-edge 1.4nm chips for AI that are entirely Japanese. This project will have a development cost of approximately 363 million dollars, although, and this is what is really important, the manufacturing of these integrated circuits Rapidus will take carea company that seeks to compete face to face in the medium term with TSMC and Samsung in the semiconductor production market for third parties. Rapidus advances with firm step Japan is currently investing more money in its integrated circuits sector than the US, Germany, France or the UK. Not in terms of net value, but their effort is greater if we weight the investment of these countries over their gross domestic product (GDP). The US dedicates 0.21% of its GDP to its semiconductor industry, and Germany 0.41%. France, according Nikkei Asia0.2%, and, finally, the United Kingdom 0.04%. The difference is very significant and highlights the effort that Japan is making with 0.71% of its GDP. As expected, Japanese companies have a leading role in the reconstruction plan for the Japanese chip industry. Tokyo Electron, Canon and Nikon are the leading designers and manufacturers of integrated circuit production equipment. AND JSR Corporation leads the production of photoresist materials. Curiously, it is necessary to pour these fluids over the silicon wafers in order to prepare them for the transfer of the geometric pattern that delimits the distribution of the transistors, the connections and the other elements that make up an integrated circuit. Rapidus Corporation has been created expressly to put Japan back at the forefront of chips The surprising thing is that, in reality, none of the companies I just mentioned are Japan’s best asset to catapult the competitiveness of its semiconductor industry. Not even JSR, which, as we have just seen, leads the manufacture of photoresist materials. The company that is destined to compete face to face with TSMC, Intel or Samsung in the chip production market is Rapidus Corporation. In fact, it has been created expressly to once again place Japan at the forefront of integrated circuits. Rapidus is a very young company. It was founded on August 10, 2022 by the Japanese Government with an initial capital of 7,346 million yen (just under 46 million euros) contributed by, and here comes the interesting part, Sony, Toyota, NEC, SoftBank, Kioxia, Denso, Nippon Telegraph and MUFG Bank. The initial capital invested in the constitution of this company is not very large, but there is no doubt that the companies that participate in it have unquestionable relevance in the technology, automotive and telecommunications sectors. The state-of-the-art semiconductor production plant that this company has set up in northern Japan, in the city of Chitose (Hokkaido), began wafer processing tests in a pilot line in April 2025. The plan of the management of this factory is to begin large-scale production of 2nm semiconductors in 2027. What is causing this Rapidus plant to attract the attention of the semiconductor sector is that, according to Atsuyoshi Koikewho is the president of the company, will be completely automated. Its purpose is to use robots and AI to set up an automated production line that will be specialized in the manufacture of 2nm chips for AI applications. Their plan is, ultimately, to produce integrated circuits faster, at a lower cost and with higher quality. And after 2 nm, as we have seen, 1.4 nm integrated circuits will arrive. Image | Generated by Xataka with Gemini More information | Nikkei Asia In Xataka | Japan takes the lead with nuclear fusion and sets an extremely ambitious date: the 2030s In Xataka | Japan has taken out the checkbook to once again dominate the chip industry. Prepare a plan of 325,000 million dollars