Rapidus to partner with 17 chip design firms to win foundry orders
In short
Rapidus, the Japanese chipmaker aiming to mass-produce advanced semiconductors, said on Oct. 5 that it will work with 17 design companies in Japan and overseas, including Toshiba-related firms and Dai Nippon Printing, to support customers' design work and win orders. The company targets mass production of 2-nanometer chips in the second half of fiscal 2027 at its plant in Chitose, Hokkaido. Sankei reported that rivals Samsung Electronics and TSMC have formed similar alliances.
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Rapidus, the company aiming to mass-produce advanced semiconductors in Japan, announced on Oct. 5 that it will work with 17 companies in Japan and overseas that handle chip design, including Toshiba-related firms, to support customers and win orders. NHK reported that Rapidus intends to support customers from an early stage of design in order to link that work to orders for mass production. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
The partners named in the documents include Dai Nippon Printing, Toshiba Information Systems of Kawasaki, Mebius Design of Mashiki in Kumamoto Prefecture and U.S. software company Cadence, Sankei reported. Nikkei named Toshiba and Dai Nippon Printing among the 17. The documents do not give the complete list. [ 1 , 4 ]
Rapidus, founded in 2022, operates a business model in which it takes manufacturing orders from outside companies, Nikkei reported. Because customers design their own chips under that model, partners with design know-how can accompany customers and make orders easier to secure, Sankei reported. Sankei said the alliance is meant to help with the difficult designs of advanced products, which it described as a hurdle to winning customers. [ 1 , 4 ]
Rapidus aims to start mass production of chips with a circuit line width of 2 nanometers — a nanometer being one-billionth of a meter — in the second half of fiscal 2027 at its plant in Chitose, Hokkaido, according to Nikkei and Sankei. [ 1 , 4 ]
Rival chipmakers Samsung Electronics and TSMC have formed similar alliances, and Rapidus is putting its structure in place for mass production, Sankei reported. [ 4 ]
Why it matters
Rapidus's contract-manufacturing model requires customers to design their own chips, so design partners with know-how are meant to lower the barrier to using its advanced process and make orders easier to secure. The move puts Rapidus alongside Samsung and TSMC, which Sankei reported have built comparable alliances, as the company prepares for 2-nanometer output. The documents give no figures on the value of the partnerships.
Key facts
- Rapidus announced on Oct. 5 that it will partner with 17 companies in Japan and overseas that handle semiconductor design, including Toshiba-related firms. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- The stated aim is to support customers from an early stage of design so the work leads to orders for Rapidus's contract manufacturing business. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Partners named in the documents include Dai Nippon Printing, Toshiba Information Systems of Kawasaki, Mebius Design of Mashiki, Kumamoto, and U.S. software company Cadence. [ 1 , 4 ]
- Rapidus was founded in 2022 and operates a business model in which it takes semiconductor manufacturing orders from outside companies. [ 1 ]
- Rapidus aims to mass-produce chips with a circuit line width of 2 nanometers in the second half of fiscal 2027 at its plant in Chitose, Hokkaido. [ 1 , 4 ]
- Samsung Electronics and TSMC have formed similar alliances, according to Sankei. [ 4 ]
Confirmed by several sources
- Rapidus announced it will work with 17 chip design companies in Japan and overseas, including Toshiba-related firms. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- The purpose of the alliance is to support customers' design work and turn it into orders for Rapidus's contract manufacturing. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
- Rapidus aims to begin mass production of 2-nanometer chips in the second half of fiscal 2027 at a plant in Chitose, Hokkaido. [ 1 , 4 ]
Still unclear
- Whether Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has decided on support worth a cumulative total of around 3 trillion yen. Only Nikkei mentions the figure, in an article that is partly behind a paywall and whose sentence is cut off; the other documents do not address it.
- The full list of the 17 partner companies. The documents name only some of them — Toshiba-related firms, Dai Nippon Printing, Toshiba Information Systems, Mebius Design and Cadence — and give no complete roster.
- The financial or commercial terms of the partnerships. No document states any terms, and the announcements are described only in general terms.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Nikkei reports that Rapidus will tie up with 17 semiconductor design-related companies, including Toshiba and Dai Nippon Printing. [ 1 ]
- NHK reports that Rapidus has announced the tie-up with 17 design companies in Japan and overseas. [ 2 ]
- Sankei reports the Oct. 5 announcement, naming Toshiba Information Systems, Mebius Design and Cadence, and citing similar alliances at Samsung and TSMC. [ 4 ]