KDDI said in June that it will help turn Sharp's LCD panel factory in Sakai, Osaka prefecture, into a data center for artificial intelligence. (Source photos by Kyodo)

The AI scramble: Why SoftBank, KDDI and others are racing for Sharp's LCD factory

As Japan aspires to be a major player in AI it is desperate for data centers

RYOHTAROH SATOH, Nikkei staff writer

June 21, 2024 06:00 JST

TOKYO -- The announcements came a few days apart, a sign of how intense the talks had been. In early June, Japanese telecom carrier KDDI said it would work with Sharp to turn the latter's troubled LCD panel factory in Sakai, a coastal city in Osaka, into a data center for artificial intelligence.