Svmuu News: The Japanese government has announced it will provide up to 1 trillion yen (approximately $6.2 billion) in funding to support a consortium of nine companies—including subsidiaries of SoftBank Group—in jointly developing domestic AI foundation models, with the aim of accelerating Japan’s efforts to catch up with the United States and China’s lead in the AI field.
The initiative aims to help Japan establish an independent and controllable AI technology system, strengthen “technological sovereignty,” and reduce reliance on overseas large-scale models and computing power ecosystems. The project will focus on the research and development of foundational large-scale models, with participants includingSoftBank, and several other technology companies, prioritizing core areas such as computing infrastructure, model training, and industrial applications.
The Japanese government stated that this initiative reflects how, against the backdrop of an accelerating global AI race, countries are using national-level funding and industry consortiums to expedite the development of domestic AI ecosystems in order to enhance their strategic competitiveness. (Nikkei)