The Japanese government will provide Rapidus, which is pushing to domestically produce advanced semiconductors, with an additional 631.5 billion yen, or about 5.9 trillion won, in commissioned research and development funding for fiscal 2026.

Japanese outlet ITmedia reported on April 13 that the support is intended to move forward Rapidus' goal of starting mass production in the second half of fiscal 2027.

Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa (아카자와 료세이) disclosed the additional support plan at an opening ceremony for new facilities held at Rapidus' factory in Chitose, Hokkaido. Rapidus is pursuing mass production of advanced semiconductors based on a 2-nanometre process. The new funds will be used for prototype performance evaluation and yield improvement. A panel of external experts approved the support package in March this year.

With the decision, cumulative Japanese government support for Rapidus increases to 2.35 trillion yen, or about 21.95 trillion won. Separately, 250 billion yen, or about 2.33 trillion won, will be disbursed as government equity funding across fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2026. The structure is for the government to push Rapidus as a national-level semiconductor project by combining R&D support with capital injections.

Akazawa called Rapidus a "national project that must succeed for the national interest" in front of Rapidus President Atsuyoshi Koike (고이케 아쓰요시) and Hokkaido Governor Naomichi Suzuki (스즈키 나오미치) at the site. He added it is "absolutely necessary" to keep Japan prosperous.

The Japanese government also rolled out support for the design field, which is expected to be linked to securing future customers, as well as Rapidus' production base. Akazawa also announced decisions to support 2 advanced semiconductor design projects by Fujitsu and IBM Japan. As concerns persist that Rapidus has a weak customer base, a Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry official said the ministry hopes it will lead to manufacturing orders for Rapidus in the future.

An opening ceremony was also held at the Chitose plant for an analysis centre that evaluates prototype quality and an R&D hub responsible for back-end processing, the final stage of semiconductor manufacturing. The analysis centre will check the performance and quality of prototypes and reflect the results in the production process to raise yields. Because it is located within the same site, expectations are also growing that it can speed up process changes.

The back-end process R&D hub targets technological innovation in areas such as assembly processes. The Japanese government views the field as an area where Japanese companies are competitive and where there is room for growth. It reflects a trend to build an ecosystem by bundling design, evaluation and back-end processes, rather than simply building production lines.

The support also ties into Japan's long-term goal of fostering its semiconductor industry. The Sanae Takaichi (다카이치 사나에) administration set a policy to raise semiconductor manufacturing revenue in Japan to 40 trillion yen, or about 372 trillion won, by 2040 from 6 trillion yen, or about 55 trillion won, in 2022. As a result, meeting Rapidus' mass production schedule, expanding its customer base and improving yields are emerging as key tasks in Japan's semiconductor rebuilding strategy.