Automotive

FPT and Smart Holdings unite for Japan’s manufacturing DX

Global IT Corporation FPT has entered a joint venture with Smart Holdings Co., Ltd. (Smart Holdings), a leading Japan-based IT solutions provider specializing in the manufacturing sector, to establish FPT Smart Technologies Japan Co., Ltd. (FST-Japan). Headquartered in Nagoya, the joint venture aims to accelerate digital transformation across Japan’s manufacturing industry, with a strategic focus on the automotive sector. FPT and Smart Holdings have restructured their collaboration into a joint venture, with FPT acquiring a 49 percent stake and Smart Holdings retaining 51 percent. The partnership addresses rising demand for digital transformation in Japan’s manufacturing sector, driven by trends such as Software-Defined Vehicles (SDVs), carbon neutrality, and Mobility as a Service (MaaS). FPT brings advanced technical expertise in AI, digital engineering, and vision-language models, while Smart Holdings contributes deep knowledge…