The capital is intended to bankroll Rapidus’ work for IT firm Fujitsu Ltd, one of the initial clients that Tokyo hopes will get the signature endeavour off the ground. An external committee inspected Rapidus’ foundry in Hokkaido in northern Japan, and signed off on its technological progress, the ministry said. Policymakers see Rapidus’ success and technological independence in AI, robotics and quantum computing as critical to the country’s security. In addition to technological hurdles, Rapidus — like other manufacturers in resource-poor Japan — are getting squeezed by rising costs for energy and material input during the conflict in the Middle East. Tokyo is counting on Rapidus at a time soaring demand for the chips critical to AI development is squeezing supplies of memory and other semiconductors around the world, threatening economic stability.

Source: The Edge Markets April 11, 2026 05:31 UTC