SoftBank, NEC, Honda, and Sony jointly establish a new company to develop Nissan-branded AI

MarsBitNews · 2026-04-13T02:25:02+00:00

Japan's four major companies have established a new company, "Japan AI Foundation Model Development," focusing on the development of foundational artificial intelligence models, and plan to apply them across various industries, including autonomous driving and robotics. The company will gather about 100 developers, receive government support, and open its technology to other Japanese companies.

MarsBitNews

2026-04-13 02:25:02

Abstract generation in progress

Mars Finance reports that, according to Japan’s Kyodo News, a new company focused on artificial intelligence (AI) development has been established primarily by four companies: SoftBank, NEC, Honda, and Sony Group. The report states that the company will leverage support from the Japanese government to create domestically developed AI foundational models, with plans to provide the developed AI to Japanese businesses. The company is named “Japan AI Foundation Model Development,” and it plans to gather about 100 AI developers, with a senior management position held by an executive from SoftBank. In addition to these four companies, Japan Steel Works, Kobe Steel, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation, and Mizuho Bank, three major banks, are also participating in funding. SoftBank and NEC will handle development, while Honda will apply the development results to autonomous driving. AI development firm Preferred Networks (Tokyo) is also involved. The AI developed will be broadly accessible to Japanese companies beyond the investors, and in the future, it will also venture into AI for robot control.

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