AWS pours $15 billion to expand cloud offering in Japan

Amazon Web Services (AWS) plans to invest ¥2.26 trillion, or US$15 billion, into its existing cloud infrastructure in Japan by 2027 in a bid to meet growing customer demands.

The cloud provider, which entered the Japanese market in 2009, currently has cloud infrastructure located in Tokyo and Osaka. The company invested ¥1.51 trillion between 2011 to 2022 to construct, connect, operate and maintain its data centres. This latest investment will bring AWS’ planned total cloud investment in the country to approximately ¥3.77 trillion by 2027.

“Our investment into cloud infrastructure generates a ripple effect across the Japanese industries including the public and government sector,” AWS Japan president Tadao Nagasaki said.

“It will help more Japanese organisations with the ability to access and adopt new, emerging and transformational digital technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. We are committed to and excited about the future of Japan’s digital economy.”

Amazon Bedrock in Japan

Last October, the company announced the general availability of its flagship generative AI service, Amazon Bedrock, in its Tokyo region.

According to the company, Asahi Group, FP Corporation, KDDI Corporation and Ricoh Company are among some of its customers that have adopted its generative AI technology.

“The development of digital infrastructure in Japan is key to strengthening the country’s industrial competitiveness, and data centres play an important role to this end,” said Takuya Hirai, former digital minister and current chair of headquarters for the promotion of a digital society, Liberal Democratic Party.

“It promotes the use of important technologies such as AI and improves the capabilities of research and development in Japan.”

However, AWS is not the only cloud provider expanding its footprint in Japan. Last year, Microsoft opened its sixth AI co-innovation lab worldwide in Kobe.

Meanwhile, Chinese chipmaker Nvidia has its sights set on constructing a network of semiconductor plants in Japan to help address the demand for graphic chips-powering AI.

Related reading: AWS Marketplace adds third-party services to manage your SaaS

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