US and Japan launch $1B AI research partnership

The DOE and two Japanese ministries announced a $1 billion, five-year partnership Thursday linking 12 U.S. national labs with 12 Japanese research institutions.energy
The collaboration under the Genesis Mission will field 11 joint teams focused on quantum science, fusion energy, biotech, and autonomous labs.energy
The deal deepens U.S.-Japan AI ties amid rivalry with China, granting researchers access to DOE supercomputers and Japan’s Fugaku system.hpcwire

US and Japan Launch $1 Billion AI Research Partnership Under Genesis Mission

The United States and Japan on Thursday announced a $1 billion strategic partnership that makes Japan the first international partner in the Trump administration’s Genesis Mission, a sweeping effort to transform scientific research through artificial intelligence.

The U.S. Department of Energy and Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) and Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) jointly unveiled the initiative, with each country contributing $500 million over five years. The partnership will connect 12 DOE National Laboratories with 12 Japanese research institutions, forming 11 joint scientific teams focused on quantum information science, fusion energy, biotechnology, and autonomous laboratory systems.energy

Building on Months of Groundwork

The announcement formalizes a relationship that has been developing since January, when Argonne National Laboratory signed a memorandum of understanding in Osaka with RIKEN, Fujitsu, and Nvidia — marking the first foreign participation in the Genesis Mission. A separate DOE-MEXT partnership on fusion energy commercialization was announced in May.aicerts

The Genesis Mission itself was established by executive order signed by President Trump on November 24, 2025, tasking the DOE with building an integrated discovery platform spanning its 17 National Laboratories. DOE Under Secretary for Science Darío Gil, who leads the initiative, has said the effort will “double the productivity and impact of American science and engineering within a decade”.aip

Supercomputing and Strategic Competition

The joint teams will have access to DOE high-performance computing systems and Japan’s Fugaku supercomputer, which RIKEN operates as one of the world’s most powerful machines. Gil has described the Genesis Mission as defining “how science will be conducted in the age of AI”.hpcwire

The partnership comes amid intensifying competition between the United States and China for dominance in AI, with Japan positioning itself as Washington’s closest scientific ally in the Asia-Pacific. As Nikkei Asia reported, Tokyo is seeking breakthroughs in biotechnology, nuclear fusion, and quantum technology through the collaboration.nikkei

A Broader Coalition Taking Shape

The Japan partnership is the largest but not the only external collaboration under Genesis. In December 2025, the DOE announced agreements with 24 organizations — including CoreWeave, xAI, and XPRIZE — to advance the mission. The DOE has also awarded hundreds of millions in domestic funding, including $320 million announced in December 2025 for AI-for-science projects across the national laboratory system.x