On Friday, the Japanese computer and telecommunications manufacturer Fujitsu and the American technology giant Nvidia decided to collaborate on artificial intelligence in order to produce smart robots and other breakthroughs utilizing Nvidia’s computer processors.
“The industrial revolution in AI has already started. On stage, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang hugged his Fujitsu colleague Takahito Tokita and stated, “It is crucial to build the infrastructure to power it in Japan and around the world.”
At a hotel in Tokyo, Huang told reporters, “Japan can lead the world in AI and robotics.”
The businesses will collaborate to create what they have dubbed “an AI infrastructure,” or the framework that will support the different applications of AI in the future, such as manufacturing, healthcare, the environment, next-generation computing, and customer service. By 2030, it is hoped that Japan will have such AI infrastructure in place.
It will use Nvidia’s GPUs, or graphics processing units, which are crucial for AI, and will first be geared at the Japanese market, utilizing Fujitsu’s decades of expertise in this country. However, both parties anticipate that it may eventually spread globally.
Neither of the two CEOs provided a budget for the anticipated investments or a list of particular projects. However, a potential example was mentioned: exploring a partnership in AI for robotics with Yaskawa Electric Corp., a Japanese manufacturer of machinery and robots. They said AI will continue to develop and learn.
Nvidia and Fujitsu have been collaborating on AI, using robotics and digital twins to accelerate production in order to address Japan’s labor crisis as it ages. Tokita claimed that in order to maintain Japan’s competitiveness, the businesses were adopting a “humancentric” strategy. Tokita further stated, “We hope to develop new, unparalleled technologies and help address even more pressing social issues through our partnership with Nvidia.”
