Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on 1 October that the government would produce an action plan by the end of 2026 to encourage the use of artificial intelligence, The Japan Times reported. At a meeting of the Council for Japan’s Growth Strategy, she instructed cabinet ministers to prepare a concrete vision for AI use and proposals for regulatory and institutional reform.
Key points
- The government plans to complete its AI action plan by the end of 2026.
- Ministers have been asked to develop proposals for AI use and regulatory and institutional reform.
- A five-year drive beginning in April 2027 will seek public and private investment across 17 strategic sectors, including AI and semiconductors.
- A year-end growth programme will identify priority sectors and investment amounts alongside the fiscal 2027 budget proposal.
Takaichi assigns ministers the AI plan
Takaichi tied the planned action to the government’s economic agenda. “The societal implementation of high-performance AI is essential for realizing the government’s growth strategy,” she told the council. Her instruction to ministers covers how AI would be used as well as changes to regulation and institutions. The government intends to put those proposals into an action plan before the end of the year.
The council also discussed a broader growth strategy implementation programme, scheduled for completion at year-end alongside the government’s budget proposal for fiscal 2027. That programme is to name priority sectors and their investment amounts. The AI action plan concerns the spread of the technology, while the growth programme will set out investment priorities across a wider group of industries.
Investment plans span 17 strategic sectors
Takaichi said the government would treat the five years from April 2027 as an intensive period for public and private investment in 17 strategic sectors. AI and semiconductors are among them. For companies considering projects over several years, the government also plans to clarify budgetary measures that span multiple fiscal years, with the stated aim of making its support more predictable.
Within the priority sectors, the government intends to identify projects expected to raise Japan’s potential growth rate effectively. Profitability and wider effects on the economy are among the factors it will use. Those criteria place project selection alongside the sector-wide investment amounts in the planned programme, rather than treating designation as a strategic sector as the only step in allocating support.
Economic security projects get separate treatment
The government plans to manage sectors it considers particularly important to economic security through a separate special account. Projects would have to contribute to what it calls “autonomy of the socioeconomic structure,” “competitive advantage over other countries and regions” and “indispensability to the international community.” The planned account would give those projects a distinct route within the investment programme, subject to the stated economic-security conditions.
Takaichi also instructed cabinet ministers to prepare a policy package addressing labour shortages in construction. Those shortages could obstruct the growth-oriented investment the government wants to promote.
