Toyota, Sony Partner To Create Advanced Chip Business In Japan: Report

Toyota Motor Corp TM and Sony Group Corp SONY, along with six other Japanese companies, are planning to launch new semiconductor business.
Named Rapidus, the chip business move comes in a time when major economies are vying to boost their semiconductor availability to support artificial intelligence and quantum computing, the WSJ reports.
Toyota, Sony, and chip companies Kioxia Holdings Corp. and Tokyo Electron Ltd, along with Softbank Group Corp's SFTBF SFTBY, have contributed the equivalent of about $7 million each to create the venture.
A research center for the new business will be set up within this year.
The fall in the semiconductor manufacturing ability of Japan is seen by Tokyo as a national security concern and as a problem for local manufacturers.
Major economies like the U.S. and China are competing with each other in securing investments to develop chip capacity.
"As the struggle for control of technology between the U.S. and China intensifies, the importance of semiconductors is increasing from the perspective of economic security," the report quoted Japan Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura.
Price Action: TM shares are trading higher by 0.34% at $141.00 in premarket on the last check Friday.
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