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July 04, 2026
 

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AI

Fujikura’s roller-coaster week reveals how quickly the tides can turn for artificial intelligence stock winners as investors realize hopes for explosive growth may have run far ahead of manufacturers’ ability to deliver.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 26, 2026
Japan cable maker rout exposes cracks in AI infrastructure rally
Fujikura almost halved in value in the week through May 20 as investors rushed to dump its stock following a disappointing earnings forecast and lackluster medium-term plan.
A Kirin 9000s chip fabricated in China by Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., taken from a Huawei Mate X5 foldable smartphone in 2023.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 25, 2026
China’s Huawei reveals chip design breakthrough amid U.S. sanctions
China is seen as unlikely to reach Huawei’s target through conventional manufacturing alone because of restricted access to advanced lithography tools and other technologies.
A Huawei booth during the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai last year
BUSINESS / Tech
May 25, 2026
Huawei’s ‘chip queen’ etches her name in China’s tech folklore
He Tingbo’s career has tracked Huawei’s rise, its struggle following U.S. sanctions, and then a rebirth as the ​core ​driver of China’s mission to become a high-tech juggernaut.
Countries including Japan see the ability to control chips, data centers and AI models as directly related to national resilience in a landscape dominated by U.S. and Chinese technology.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 25, 2026
Sakura Internet eyes more spending to meet AI data center demand
The data center operator is eyeing an allocation of as much as ¥20 billion to ¥30 billion ($125 million to $190 million) this fiscal year, founder and CEO Kunihiro Tanaka has said.
Combined net profits at Japanese listed companies in fiscal 2025 rose 9.0% from the previous year to a record, according to SMBC Nikko Securities.
BUSINESS
May 24, 2026
Japanese listed firms log record net profits in 2025
The figure for the year ended in March hit a record high for the fifth consecutive year, thanks to rosy earnings of semiconductor- and data center-related companies.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a meeting of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy on Friday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
BUSINESS
May 23, 2026
Takaichi considering new quota for growth investment
The plan would cover 17 growth areas, including artificial intelligence and semiconductors, to support long-term corporate investments.
An intelligence bot at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi in February
BUSINESS / Tech / FOCUS
May 22, 2026
The AI bots are coming, and the young are booing instead of applauding
Perhaps the clearest sign of discomfort with the vision of the world offered by tech companies is the rising discontent among America’s youth.
Japan's trade balance in April was a ¥301.9 billion ($1.9 billion) surplus on an unadjusted basis, according to the Finance Ministry, remaining in the black unexpectedly on strong exports and a sharp drop in energy imports.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 21, 2026
Japan’s trade surplus remained in the black in April as energy imports plunged
Exports remained robust, with chip exports rising 44% amid strong demand for artificial intelligence-related products.
A SpaceX Super Heavy booster carrying the Starship spacecraft lifts off on its 11th test flight at the company's launch pad in Starbase, Texas, on Oct.13, 2025.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 21, 2026
SpaceX IPO filing lays bare losses and Musk control as it stakes future on AI
Much of its outlook relies on SpaceX dominating technologies and markets that do not yet exist — from Mars missions to AI data centers in space.
The Metropolitan Police Department discovered the lower half of a human body on Tuesday, approximately 100 meters off a hiking trail in Nippara, in the town of Okutama, located on the outskirts of western Tokyo.
JAPAN
May 20, 2026
Possible fatal bear attack reported in mountains of western Tokyo
If confirmed, the incident in the mountains of Okutama would mark Tokyo’s first recorded fatal bear attack since at least 2006.
Apple CEO Tim Cook applauds as the iPhone 17 series goes on sale at the Apple Store in New York City last September.
COMMENTARY / World
May 20, 2026
Apple grandmaster Tim Cook is playing 3D chess with AI
The smartphone is the most valuable choke point in the modern economy. It’s the primary entry to the electronic world — and Apple dominates.
Liberal Democratic Party cybersecurity affairs leader Masaaki Taira speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 19, 2026
Japan’s Mythos response ‘must involve Big Tech,’ says LDP cybersecurity chief
Anthropic allows only a limited number of companies and groups to access the AI model given the risks it poses.
Nintendo shares climbed as much as 6.8% in Tokyo Tuesday to mark a third straight day of gains — their longest winning streak since mid-March.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 19, 2026
Nintendo shares rebound as AI fatigue fuels Japan stock rotation
Nintendo shares climbed as much as 6.8% in Tokyo to mark a third straight day of gains — their longest winning streak since mid-March.
Cybersecurity minister Hisashi Matsumoto speaks at a ministerial meeting on cyber defense measures in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
May 19, 2026
Japan to strengthen cyber defense for critical infrastructure
Japan’s cybersecurity minister Hisashi Matsumoto said the government would work to build the “world’s highest” cyber resilience.
Elon Musk arrives at the Ronald V. Dellums Federal Building for court in Oakland, California on April 30.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 19, 2026
Elon Musk loses case against Sam Altman over OpenAI’s overhaul
The Tesla CEO had claimed that Altman’s leadership betrayed OpenAI’s mission to benefit the public by morphing into a for-profit business.
Pope Leo XIV holds the weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican on May 13.
WORLD
May 19, 2026
Pope Leo to address rise of AI in first major text
The document, known as ‌an encyclical, ‌is likely to decry the use of AI in warfare and address how ​the technology is challenging workers’ rights, according to sources.
ANA President and CEO Koji Shibata speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on April 30.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2026
Japanese firms post AI-driven rosy profits, but Iran woes remain
Many companies opted not to reflect the impact of the conflict in their earnings projections, as it could affect various aspects such as procurement, manufacturing and consumer sentiment.
The building that houses Recruit Holdings' headquarters in Tokyo. Investors have shown confidence in Recruit’s HR Technology unit, where Indeed is leveraging AI to improve matching and raising average revenue from each job posting even as hiring demand remains soft.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2026
Recruit shares jump most on record on stronger-than-projected growth
The rally reflects confidence in Recruit’s HR Technology unit, where Indeed is leveraging AI to improve matching and raising average revenue from each job posting.
The components of a Kioxia solid-state drive. Shares are up more than 300% this year for the Tokyo-based company.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 18, 2026
Kioxia shares awash in buy orders after AI-driven profit surge
The Tokyo-based company said it expects to earn an operating profit of ¥1.3 trillion during the June quarter, above the record profit it earned for the full year ended March.
People walk outside the National Stock Exchange in Mumbai in October 2024
BUSINESS
May 17, 2026
India missed out on AI and now its run as market darling may be over
In a stark shift, India’s stock market is on the verge of dropping out of the world’s five biggest for the first time in three years.
‘My dream is broken’: Japan visa rules push out foreign residents
A man orders from a kebab shop in the Okubo district in Tokyo.
Japan triples departure tax in push to combat overtourism
Tourists in Yanaka Ginza, Tokyo, on Wednesday. Japan tripled its International Tourist Tax (departure tax) to ¥3,000 from ¥1,000 on Wednesday for all travelers leaving Japan, regardless of nationality.
Japanese-language education is at a turning point
The country is gradually transforming Japanese-language education from a volunteer-driven system into a professional, government-supported network to better serve its growing foreign population. 
More facilities in Japan placing sanitary bins in men’s restrooms
A sanitary bin with an awareness sticker placed in a men's restroom in the Nagasaki Municipal Government building
Japan plans to sharply raise fees for residence permits from October
Foreign tourists walk on the path leading to the Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in May.
Six of the best: rikishi of note in each sumo division
Kazuma (right) faces off against future <i>yokozuna</i> Onosato during the All Japan Amateur Sumo Championships at the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo in December 2020.
Some startups see opportunity in an aging Japan
Yasmin Baba, CTO of Amilis, wins the Grand Prize at the Pitch2Tokyo Grand Final on Feb. 19.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

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