Rapidus is set to start the operations of a pilot line at its plant for advanced semiconductors in Chitose, Hokkaido, on Tuesday. The launch of the test line will be an important milestone in Rapidus' aim of beginning mass production at the factory in 2027. Securing domestic output bases for chips, a strategic item, is a pressing issue for Japan at a time when geopolitical risks such as a standoff between the United States and China are becoming more apparent. Rapidus was established in 2022 with investments from Toyota Motor, Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. and other Japanese companies. The Chitose plant is slated to produce cutting-edge semiconductors with a circuit line width of 2 nanometers, expected to be used in artificial intelligence technology and autonomous driving systems.

Japanese chipmaking venture Rapidus said Friday it will enter into a tie-up with Canadian startup Tenstorrent to mass produce semiconductors for artificial intelligence. The chips they aim to jointly produce will consume less electricity than existing ones used in products such as smartphones and smartwatches. Rapidus President Atsuyoshi Koike and Tenstorrent's Jim Keller, CEO of the chip designer, signed an agreement in California on Thursday. "We will manufacture quality chips in collaboration with Tenstorrent," Koike said in a phone interview. "They took interest in our plan to manufacture semiconductors rapidly."

Japan is investing almost half a billion dollars to beef up semiconductor development and production in a "last chance" attempt to keep its position as a major player on the global technology stage, the government said Friday. The new company Rapidus, which means "quick" in Latin, will work on developing next-generation, or "post-5G," semiconductors, according to the Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry. These advanced chips will allow for smart gadgets and smart cities with high-speed sensors and transmission. The components have to be extremely thin -- a fraction of a hair's breadth. The 70-billion-yen ($490-million) effort will involve working closely with major Japan ally the U.S. to bring together "the best and the brightest" from both nations, the ministry said in a statement.

TOKYO--Toyota Motor Corp. and Sony Group Corp., together with six other Japanese companies, are creating a new business to design and make next-generation semiconductors by the late 2020s. The venture, called Rapidus, Latin for "rapid," comes amid rising competition among major economies for advanced chips to support applications such as artificial intelligence and quantum computing. Toyota, Sony and chip companies Kioxia Holdings Corp. and Tokyo Electron Ltd., as well as SoftBank Group Corp., have each contributed about one billion yen, around $7 million, to create the venture, the Japanese government said Friday. A research center for the new business will be set up this year, the government said. "As the struggle for control of technology between the U.S. and China intensifies, the importance of semiconductors is increasing from the perspective of economic security," Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said.