Rapidus President Unveils Plan to Build Chip Factory on the Moon by 2040s

On September 11, 2026, Rapidus President Atsuyoshi Koike announced at a speech in the United States that the Japanese semiconductor company plans to build a chip factory on the lunar surface around 2040. He said the plan is serious, noting that the Moon has water resources needed for semiconductor manufacturing. During the presentation, Koike showed an AI-generated concept video of the proposed lunar factory.

Arvind Krishna, CEO of IBM, who attended the same event, revealed that IBM and Rapidus are jointly developing 1-nanometer advanced chips.

Rapidus was established in August 2022 with funding from the Japanese government and eight major domestic companies. Headquartered in Tokyo, it aims to achieve mass production of advanced 2-nanometer chips. Earlier reports said Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry has pledged 250 billion yen in support and plans an additional 150 billion yen in its fiscal 2027 budget request. Rapidus estimates total investment for R&D and mass production at over 7 trillion yen and hopes to expand private funding to around 1 trillion yen.