Honda Motor is preparing to invest several billion yen in Rapidus, the Japanese chipmaker that has become a costly government experiment in rebuilding domestic semiconductor production.
According to Nikkei, the automaker plans to take a stake in Rapidus during the second half of fiscal 2025, according to people familiar with the matter. Honda’s investment would follow Toyota Motor, which is already the main shareholder in the startup established in August 2022.
The move reflects Honda’s urgency to secure chip supplies for autonomous driving vehicles while reducing dependence on Taiwan. Honda already struck a strategic partnership with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. in 2023 for automotive chips, but the Rapidus investment offers a hedge against geopolitical risks stemming from potential China-Taiwan tensions.
Rapidus faces daunting financial challenges. The company needs to raise ¥5 trillion ($33 billion) before starting mass production in 2027, yet existing shareholders including Toyota, NTT and Sony Group have invested just ¥7.3 billion ($50.4 million) combined. While Japan’s government has committed ¥1.72 trillion ($11.5 billion), Rapidus still requires over ¥3 trillion ($20 billion) from private sources.
The chipmaker aims to produce cutting-edge 2-nanometer semiconductors, competing directly with industry leaders TSMC and Samsung Electronics, both of which plan 2nm production by 2025 – two years ahead of Rapidus’s timeline.
Honda’s bet represents faith in Japan’s semiconductor revival, though industry skeptics question whether Rapidus can match Taiwan’s decades of manufacturing expertise.
