In the area of supercomputing, Japan‘s aim is to use ultra-fast calculations to accelerate advances in artificial intelligence (AI), such as “deep learning” technology that works off algorithms which mimic the human brain’s neural pathways, to help computers perform new tasks and analyze scores of data. It could help to develop driverless cars, robotics, and medicine. Private companies would have to pay to be able to use the machine. According to Satoshi Sekiguchi, a director general at Japan‘s National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, “As far as we know, there is nothing out there that is as fast,” though everything is still at the very first step.
Japan's not had a great time of it recently, with an aging workforce and a slow-growing economy that generates plenty of comment. Historically, it's been the center of the technology world, but South Korea and China have both supplanted the nation in the field of consumer electronics. Currently the fastest supercomputer in the country is Oakforest-PACS of Fujitsu (10.5 petaflops). If it comes to a success, Japan will again come back to top with the fastest supercomputer.