Japan government to buy Nvidia Rubin chips to build national AI ecosystem

Jul 16, 2026

Japan's government will buy 27,500 of Nvidia's next-generation Rubin chips to build a sovereign AI ecosystem focused on robotics. The chips will power a computing hub launching in 2028. Nvidia is also forming a coalition with Japanese industrial giants like Fujitsu and Hitachi and has unveiled a new "world model" AI, Cosmos 3 Edge, to help systems navigate physical environments.

Cosmos 3 Edge model launch

▪The Cosmos 3 Edge model helps systems perceive and navigate physical environments in real time.
▪Nvidia unveiled Cosmos 3 Edge, a new "world model" AI designed for robots and vision AI agents.
▪The launch of Cosmos 3 Edge follows the release of the Cosmos 3 model in May.

Japan physical AI coalition

▪Nvidia is forming a coalition in Japan which industrial giants Fujitsu, Hitachi, and Kawasaki Heavy Industries intend to join.
▪The Nvidia chips will power a computing hub in Japan that is scheduled to launch in 2028.
▪Japan's government plans to buy 27,500 of Nvidia's next-generation Rubin chips to build a national AI ecosystem.
▪The purchased Nvidia chips will be used to create a homegrown foundational AI model for robots.

Japan AI market growth

▪Japan's AI market is expected to reach a value of $27.9 billion by 2029, according to the International Trade Administration.
▪Microsoft previously invested $10 billion in Japan to develop the country's AI infrastructure and cybersecurity.

Drug discovery partnerships

▪The Tokyo-1 AI drug discovery consortium, operated by Mitsui subsidiary Xeureka, is expanding and uses the Nvidia BioNeMo Agent Toolkit.
▪Japanese pharmaceutical firms Astellas Pharma Inc, Daiichi Sankyo, and Ono Pharmaceutical are using Nvidia's specialized biology toolkit.
▪Nvidia is expanding into Japan's healthcare and biotechnology sectors with new drug discovery and medical robotics initiatives.

Industrial automation expansion

▪Nvidia is partnering with Kawasaki Heavy Industries to make inroads into industrial automation in Japan.
▪Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated Japan has an opportunity to reinvent its manufacturing for the age of intelligent industries.