Post Thumbnail

SoftBank and OpenAI to build large-scale AI data center in Japan

The telecommunications giant plans to acquire a former Sharp LCD panel factory for 100 billion yen and transform it into one of the country’s largest data centers for serving AI agents.

SoftBank plans to transform a former Sharp LCD panel factory in Japan into a data center for operating artificial intelligence agents developed in collaboration with the American company OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT.

The Japanese telecommunications giant intends to acquire the facility and part of the land at the closed Sharp LCD TV factory in Osaka for approximately 100 billion yen ($677.05 million). This acquisition will be a key element in SoftBank’s strategy to strengthen its position in the artificial intelligence market.

The center is expected to begin operations in 2026 and become one of the largest in Japan, with a power consumption capacity of 150 megawatts. Such significant energy capabilities are necessary to ensure the operation of complex next-generation artificial intelligence models.

The partnership between SoftBank and OpenAI aims to commercialize OpenAI’s AI agent model in Japan. The companies plan to train the model on client company data and offer customizable AI agents adapted to the specific needs of the Japanese market.

According to Nikkei, investments in the project are expected to be significant — potentially approaching 1 trillion yen ($6.77 billion). This indicates the scale of both companies’ ambitions for developing artificial intelligence technologies in the Asia-Pacific region.

This partnership could significantly change the landscape of AI technologies in Japan, creating local infrastructure for processing large volumes of data and training artificial intelligence models with regional specifics in mind.

Autor: AIvengo
For 5 years I have been working with machine learning and artificial intelligence. And this field never ceases to amaze, inspire and interest me.

Latest News

NVIDIA couldn't sell AI chips until OpenAI appeared

NVIDIA head Jensen Huang shared an interesting story that today looks like a fateful moment in the development of modern technologies.

Pudu Robotics released CC1 Pro — robot cleans 8000 m² per cycle

Pudu Robotics company introduced a new generation of autonomous cleaning systems — CC1 Pro. Which raises cleanliness standards in large commercial facilities to a fundamentally new level.

Boston Dynamics released Orbit 5.0 — AI reduced inspections by 70%

A cool update Orbit 5.0 for the Spot robot control platform from Boston Dynamics has been released. Which fundamentally changes the approach to industrial analytics and monitoring! The system now allows centralized control of entire robot fleets across multiple facilities, providing operators with detailed real-time analytics.

Abu Dhabi will spend $2.5 billion on AI-managed city by 2027

Imagine a city where artificial intelligence takes care of every aspect of your life. This is not science fiction, but the near future of Abu Dhabi! Companies BOLD Technologies and My Aion are developing a unified platform Aion Sentia. Which will take control of all urban systems — from transport to healthcare and education.

4 Chinese engineers smuggled 80 TB of AI data in backpacks to Malaysia

An incredible technological odyssey is unfolding right now! Chinese engineers found a surprisingly analog way to bypass digital restrictions. Imagine: 4 employees of a Chinese AI startup are flying from Beijing to Kuala Lumpur. And each carries 15 hard drives in their backpack! In total — 80 terabytes of data for neural network training.