The Japanese government revealed its plan to develop the local semiconductor industry, investing 70 billion yen ($503 million) for 2nm chipmaking tech in a document on the official website of the country’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) on Nov. 11. The file detailed that Japan will partner with US tech giant IBM to develop 2nm chipmaking tech and will import EUV lithography this year. In 2022, Japan will build a Leading-edge Semiconductor Technology Center (LSTC) for advanced chip research and development, just like the US National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC). LSTC will set up a firm named Rapidus, working with NSTC, IBM, and Interuniversity Microelectronics Centre to design and manufacture advanced chips. Domestic firms like Sony, Kioxia, and Soft Bank will also invest in Rapidus. Japan projects its semiconductor market to grow from 50 trillion yen to 75 trillion yen in 2025 and 100 trillion yen in 2030, according to the file. The US proposed to form an alliance, known as Chip 4, to partner with South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan to build a closed semiconductor supply chain last year, according to Nikkei Asia, excluding mainland China to access these technologies. [METI, in Japanese, Caixin, in Chinese]