Japan will launch a national artificial intelligence project costing $19 billion.

According to reports, the Japanese government will collaborate with the private sector to launch a large-scale project to develop a national artificial intelligence system worth approximately 30 trillion yen. It is expected that in the spring of next year, SoftBank Group and over ten other Japanese companies will establish a new company to develop Japan's largest foundational artificial intelligence model. The new company will be led by SoftBank Group, bringing together around 100 experts selected through company competitions, including SoftBank engineers and developers from Preferred Networks. The Japanese government emphasizes that artificial intelligence directly impacts industrial competitiveness and national security, and overreliance on foreign technology can bring strategic risks, which is one of the reasons for initiating this project.