Japan Prefecture Signs Nation-first Partnership With Nvidia Amid AI Boom

TOKYO, Feb 17 (Bernama-Kyodo) -- Kagawa Prefecture in western Japan and the Japanese unit of semiconductor giant Nvidia Corp. on Tuesday signed a partnership, the first for a local government in the country, as they seek to expand the use of artificial intelligence among companies in the region and court the development of data centres, Kyodo News reported.

The local government has been promoting the prefecture as an ideal area to work, particularly toward technology companies, due to its low risk for natural disasters and stable electricity supply.

It also hopes to improve the productivity of firms located within the prefecture by gathering companies utilising graphics processing units developed by Nvidia, the prefectural government said.

"We take pride in Kagawa's advantageous location when it comes to the operation of GPU centres," Kagawa Gov. Toyohito Ikeda said at the signing ceremony. "We hope to expand the implementation of AI for firms in the prefecture by enlisting (Nvidia's) help."

Masataka Osaki, head of Nvidia's Japanese unit, said, "A range of AI catered to individual regions has been launched globally. We hope Kagawa Prefecture will become a role model across the country."

-- BERNAMA-KYODO