Yomiuri: New Firm to Develop Japan-Made AI Unveiled; SoftBank Exec Becomes President

Dow Jones04-22

By Takuya Ono / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff Writer

Japan AI Foundation Model Development Corp. has announced its establishment as a company aimed at developing Japan-made AI. Led by SoftBank Corp. and others, the company aims to develop high-performance AI Japanese firms can utilize for product development and other purposes while holding their data domestically.

According to a company profile released Monday, Hironobu Tamba, a senior vice president of SoftBank, has taken up the president's post. Tamba led the development of domestic AI at SoftBank.

The company's business activities include "research and development of a domestic general-purpose foundation model" to serve as the basis for Japan-made AI used by various companies, as well as planning the necessary infrastructure required for development including data centers.

According to sources involved, SoftBank, NEC Corp., Sony Group Corp. and Honda Motor Co. have each invested over 10% in the new company.

Smaller portions of shares are held by Nippon Steel Corp., Kobe Steel Ltd. and three megabanks -- MUFG Bank Ltd., Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Bank Ltd. Additionally, Preferred Networks Inc., an AI development firm, is expected to participate in development.

The newly established company is set to apply soon for a Japan-made AI development support program, which is being solicited by a national research and development agency under the jurisdiction of the Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry. The ministry plans to provide a total of 1 trillion yen in support to a selected company over a five-year period starting in fiscal 2026.

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This article is from The Yomiuri Shimbun. Neither Dow Jones Newswires, MarketWatch, Barron's nor The Wall Street Journal were involved in the creation of this content.

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April 22, 2026 07:49 ET (11:49 GMT)

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Yomiuri: New Firm to Develop Japan-Made AI Unveiled; SoftBank Exec Becomes President

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