Japan Expands AI Partnership to Reduce Dependence on US and China

TOKYO - Japan is expanding its artificial intelligence partnerships with India, France, and Malaysia. Tokyo is also preparing similar dialogues with the United Kingdom and Brazil to reduce dependence on major US and Chinese AI companies.

Kyodo News, quoted Saturday, July 25, said the cooperation was also aimed at helping Japanese companies expand in overseas markets. At home, the government is trying to build a stronger national AI ecosystem.

Japan believes that the increasingly fierce competition in AI makes cooperation between countries more important than moving on their own.

The risk of dependence on foreign technology is also visible after the United States restricted access to the Fable and Mythos models owned by AI developer Anthropic.

At the summit in early July, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi agreed to deepen cooperation in the fields of AI, data centers, and semiconductors.

The two leaders also agreed to hold regular AI dialogues through a framework that began in April.

Japan and France first held the first high-level meeting on AI in Paris in June. Discussions included cooperation with Global South countries. The Global South generally refers to developing countries in Asia, Africa, Latin America, and other regions.

A number of Japanese companies were present at the meeting, including SoftBank Group and AI startup Sakana AI.

In mid-July, Japan and Malaysia held the first meeting through an AI platform that brought together companies from both countries.

The platform is aimed at helping Japanese and Malaysian companies find solutions to various social issues using AI.

Its formation was agreed upon in a bilateral meeting in Tokyo in June. Japan is also preparing a framework for AI dialogue with the United Kingdom and Brazil.

"This is an important diplomatic issue that directly affects national security," a senior Japanese Foreign Ministry official said.

Takaichi's administration is pushing for government and private investment in strategic sectors, including AI. The move is part of a policy to strengthen national security.

The Japanese cabinet in mid-July approved an update to the AI Basic Plan. The update comes about six months after the previous version was set.

This step shows the government's efforts to follow the very rapid development of AI.

The plan encourages the development of vertical AI for specific industry needs as well as physical AI that combines artificial intelligence with robotics.

The development of these two fields will utilize the strength of the industry that Japan has.

The government also targets AI sovereignty through cooperation with countries that have similar views.

AI sovereignty is a country's ability to control the development and use of critical AI technologies without excessive dependence on outside parties.