Toyota, Sony and Others Launch Rapidus, Plans 2027 Mass Production

On November 10, Toyota, Sony, NTT, NEC, SoftBank, KIOXIA, and two other companies jointly established a new advanced chip company named Rapidus. This venture aims to develop cutting-edge chips focused on artificial intelligence (AI) and smart city infrastructure. The company plans to initiate mass production by 2027.

Reports indicate that Rapidus is targeting the development of next-generation logic chips with a groundbreaking manufacturing technology capable of creating chips smaller than 2 nanometers, which it plans to establish between 2025 and 2029. The company will also build a production line to support these innovations, with plans to start offering foundry services for chip design firms around 2030.

According to NHK, the goal of Rapidus is to advance the mass production of semiconductors with circuit widths of 2 nanometers or less. While the semiconductor industry is currently focused on 3-nanometer production, Rapidus is taking steps to attract Japanese engineers working abroad to facilitate the transition to producing even smaller, cutting-edge semiconductors below 2 nanometers.This marks an important step in pushing the boundaries of semiconductor technology, positioning Rapidus at the forefront of the global chip manufacturing race.