U.S.-Japan semiconductor alliance of the future

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s historic visit to Washington in April has opened a new era in technology cooperation between the U.S. and Japan.

While the role that technology innovation plays was highlighted as “driving the alliance in the 21st century,” it is harder to wrap our minds around this compared to the more tangible military and space innovations capturing the headlines. In part, this is because in both countries, the private sector — not the government — will be key in galvanizing the progress.

It is also because there are so many actors, including corporate giants, pledging large cross-border investments per the impressive list of deliverables in the White House fact sheet, including Microsoft, Google, Daiichi Sankyo, Amazon Web Services, Toyota and Honda Aircraft, among many others.

IBM and Rapidus

One key technology partnership with significant implications that deserves more attention is between IBM and Rapidus, a tie-up that is focused on the high-stakes area of critical and emerging technologies — semiconductors. The looming chip war that has exposed the enormous global vulnerability with China’s progress in the sector and Taiwan’s precarious geopolitical position in a critical supply chain has focused the U.S.-Japan relationship toward the future.

Rapidus, a Japanese government-backed semiconductor manufacturer, is developing “bleeding-edge” semiconductor manufacturing and adjacent technologies and is diversifying into this space through its partnership with IBM. The two companies formed an agreement in late 2022 to jointly develop 2 nm-node technology. This partnership, led by two of the world’s greatest allies and democracies, has the potential to reign as a global leader in this space and represents the very best of what the next set of solutions for humanity might look like.

Investing in the future

The U.S. and Japan have the capacity to go even further. Washington and Tokyo’s infrastructures in terms of dealing with technology are not where they need to be to meet this moment. As was discussed during the World Economic Forum, another "Industrial Revolution" is taking place. To capture the benefits of the so-called 4th Industrial Revolution, the U.S.-Japan relationship needs to take a page out of the Rapidus-IBM partnership so it is not all in vain.

What’s most interesting about this partnership is that it’s not just about two companies, but also two ecosystems — two governments, university networks and the local municipalities who are making 1+1=3. What powers this at the macro level is the major investment of the U.S. Chips Act, which is a huge step forward in terms of investing in U.S.-grown cutting-edge tech. This is also best represented with IBM and its New York headquarters and through Rapidus’ work with Hokkaido Prefecture in tandem as a public-private partnership.

Partnering for the future

Explaining all of this at the civil society level is critical. Most people know that technology has changed their lives at the basic level, with iPhones and 5G allowing for greater connectivity. However, outside of allowing us to drive cars, have cell phones and use the many everyday tools that we take for granted in a modern economy, the chips that are at stake can power emerging concepts like the metaverse and broader artificial intelligence.

How does this look when scaled and combined with the most powerful minds and partners from the U.S. and Japan? With the leaders of both countries having carved out their new set of technology agreements between their administrations, and U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo and Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Saito Ken meeting for their economic “two-plus-two” talks, now is the time to follow the lead of IBM and Rapidus on the societal level. This means creating more space for the private, nonprofit and civil society sectors.

On the geopolitical side, the U.S.-Japan alliance is on one side of the equation, with China on the other and Taiwan in the middle. This explains why the semiconductor industry is so important for our future. When it comes to technology, competition is an uncharted area and increasingly, unlike in the military or political domains, this is not being driven by the U.S. government but by the private sector. In the same way, what Rapidus represents in Japan is a partnership marrying the public and private sectors — in stark contrast to business operations in China. This is an even more attractive and relevant reason for IBM, and the U.S. more broadly, to look to Japan as a natural partner.

Just as in the 1980s when Japanese industrial policy was a dominant force that allowed Japanese automakers to come into the largest market, the U.S., we need that same capability to unify the free and open world. However, this time, instead of the competition being between the U.S. and Japan, we are squarely on the same team and fully aligned for the future.

Writing the next chapter

The ultimate success of whether this partnership can produce chips that empower things that we cannot even imagine today will be whether we can go beyond the 1980s — the last time Japan’s economy had the vibrancy it is showing today.

But just like the journey itself, the destination is the production of these chips and to align to bring like-minded companies, people and governments together. Success, even if you start with the end goal today in 2024, will be that we have the ability to change dynamically over time to make each other better than the sum total of our parts.

At Japan Society’s Annual Dinner in June, the two CEOs of IBM and Rapidus will participate in a keynote dialogue to explain why their partnership is a model for the future of U.S.-Japan relations.

The hope is that the story of this compelling partnership will receive more attention from the broader U.S.-Japan community, whose chapters are still being written and in which we each play a key role.