TOKYO - Japan has been establishing dialogue frameworks for artificial intelligence with like-minded countries and Global South partners to reduce reliance on top U.S. and Chinese firms and promote domestic companies abroad.
The outreach signals a growing recognition among those countries of the need for cooperation, rather than going it alone, to survive in the increasingly competitive field of AI. At home, Japan is seeking to foster its own domestic AI ecosystem.
The move by the United States to restrict access to AI developer Anthropic's Fable and Mythos models also highlighted the risks of relying on AI developed overseas.
At a summit in early July between Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi and her Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, they agreed to deepen AI-related cooperation on data centers and semiconductors. They also pledged to hold dialogue on AI regularly, under a framework that began in April.
Japan and France, too, held their first high-level AI talks in Paris in June to discuss cooperation, including with developing counties collectively called the Global South. Japanese firms such as major tech investor SoftBank Group Corp. and leading Japan AI startup Sakana AI K.K. were in attendance.
In mid-July, Japan and Malaysia held their first meeting on an AI platform to match their countries' firms to solve social challenges using the technology, after its establishment was agreed in bilateral summit talks in Tokyo in June.
Arrangements for dialogue frameworks with Britain and Brazil are underway.
"This is an important diplomatic issue with direct implications for national security," a senior Foreign Ministry official said.
The government under Takaichi is aiming to boost public-private sector investment in strategic areas, including AI, as part of her drive to ensure national security.
The Cabinet approved an updated version of the country's AI Basic Plan in mid-July, only around six months after the previous version was finalized, underscoring its resolve to keep pace with rapid AI development.
The plan aims to promote various types of AI technology, including vertical AI for specific industries and physical AI, involving robotics, that builds on Japan's existing strengths. It also aims to achieve AI sovereignty through cooperation with like-minded countries.
