Japan backs Rapidus with major funds for advanced chips

Japan just decided to back Rapidus with more than one trillion yen in investment and subsidies across 2026 and 2027. The goal is pretty direct. Japan wants its own advanced semiconductor capability instead of depending on foreign suppliers at a time when economic security is tied to who controls the cutting edge of chip making.

Rapidus has mapped out an aggressive plan. It wants to start producing next generation 2 nanometer chips in the second half of fiscal 2027. These chips do not exist commercially yet, so Japan is betting on getting ahead of that curve. The company also wants to move toward 1.4 nanometer and 1 nanometer technology after that. The catch is the cost. Rapidus has bumped its total funding needs to seven trillion yen. The earlier guess was five trillion, so the gap is pretty big.

On the government side, the money pipeline is already open. There is a hundred billion yen going in this fiscal year, another one hundred fifty billion next years, and close to nine hundred thirty billion yen lined up as subsidies through 2026 and 2027. All of this sits on top of the earlier 1.7 trillion yen the state had already committed.

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AI is exploding and countries are scrambling for faster, more efficient chips. Japan wants a real seat at that table, and Rapidus is its main shot.