Specialized AI chips process data differently than standard computer processors
Business
Japan is building a new generation of processors that function like a human brain to break the global monopoly on artificial intelligence hardware.
Most computers rely on a central processor that handles tasks one by one, but Japan's new AI chips use specialized neural units designed to mimic the brain's parallel wiring. Developed by Fujitsu and the foundry Rapidus, these chips are being etched with 1.4-nanometer technology—a scale so small that the circuitry is nearly atomic. Unlike standard chips that focus on the heavy lifting of training an AI, these processors are optimized for inference, the lightning-fast phase where a machine actually makes a decision.