Microsoft’s Vice Chair and President Brad Smith (L) and Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi pose before their meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office in Tokyo on April 3, 2026.
Kazuhiro Nogi | Afp | Getty Images
On Friday, Sakura Internet saw its shares rise by 20.2% following Microsoft’s announcement that it is engaging in talks with the Japanese cloud company and SoftBank to establish artificial intelligence infrastructure in Japan.
In a strategic move, Microsoft plans to invest $10 billion in Japan from 2026 to 2029. This investment aims to build advanced AI infrastructure, enhance cybersecurity measures, and train one million engineers and developers by 2030.
Sakura Internet, which specializes in internet infrastructure services leveraging domestic data centers, will collaborate with Microsoft and SoftBank Corp. to provide AI computing resources, including graphics processing units housed in Japan.
This announcement took place during Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith’s visit to Japan, where he met with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Smith noted that this investment is timely, as there is an increasing demand for cloud and AI services in Japan. According to Microsoft’s AI Diffusion Report, approximately one in five working-age individuals in Japan utilize generative AI tools, which is higher than the global average of one in six.
This partnership will enable data to be managed locally in Japan, enhancing the potential for creating advanced AI systems, such as large language models tailored for the domestic market, Microsoft stated.
SoftBank and Microsoft Japan are also in discussions to create a collaborative solution that would allow customers using Microsoft Azure to benefit from SoftBank’s AI computing platform.
On the stock market, shares of Softbank Group increased by 0.22%, while SoftBank Corp. rose by 1.02% during Friday’s trading session.
Additionally, Microsoft is set to team up with five significant Japanese IT firms, including NTT Data Corp., NEC, Fujitsu and Hitachi to train one million AI professionals by 2030.
