TOKYO - With the AI development race intensifying and Meta announcing a trillion-yen investment, data centers are gaining increasing attention.
Japan’s data center industry is entering a new phase of prominence, and a recent roundtable program shed light on the key players, rising demand, and structural challenges shaping the sector. KDDI, one of the nation’s largest telecom operators, underscored its role as a global leader, running more than 45 data centers across major cities worldwide. With over three decades of accumulated expertise, the company positions its experience as a decisive competitive strength. Executives explained that its facilities are widely used by internet-based firms and content providers, including some of the world’s biggest technology companies such as GAFA. They also noted that foreign clients make up a particularly large share of the business. While details about the type of information stored remain confidential, the company acknowledged that data centers play an essential role in protecting highly sensitive material, highlighting their strategic importance not just for commercial needs but also for broader security concerns.
Alongside operators, consultants are playing a critical role in mapping out the industry’s trajectory. Sugiura Hidetaka, who heads RSI, a firm specializing in data center consulting, pointed out that Asia is one of the most closely watched regions in the global market. Excluding China, Japan stands out as the country attracting the greatest interest, reflecting both its economic stability and the rising appetite for secure and advanced digital infrastructure. The discussion also turned to the immense costs involved in expanding capacity. When asked how much it might cost to build a data center with the footprint of four soccer fields, estimates ranged between 20 billion and 40 billion yen, and that figure covers only the construction of the building itself. Such figures underline the sheer scale of financial commitment required to sustain the industry’s growth.
The program further explored the technological backbone of modern data centers, particularly in the era of artificial intelligence. One central theme was the fierce global competition to acquire NVIDIA’s cutting-edge GPUs, essential for running AI workloads. The latest Blackwell line has achieved nearly 1,000-fold performance improvements over the past eight years, driving companies worldwide into an intense procurement race. At the same time, experts stressed that hardware is only one part of the equation. Finding suitable locations for new facilities is becoming just as critical, given the massive amounts of electricity data centers consume. Northern Kanto was cited as one area where development potential still exists, with land and energy resources considered promising for future construction projects.
Industry observers also emphasized that the landscape is no longer limited to established giants. In Japan, new domestic firms are beginning to enter the sector, some aiming to build large-scale facilities for the first time. This trend signals a diversification of players and suggests that competition and innovation within the market will intensify. The roundtable made clear that as data becomes the essential infrastructure of the digital economy, Japan is positioning itself as a critical hub, balancing global demand, national security considerations, and the technological race underpinning the AI era.
Source: テレ東BIZ
