Fujitsu to sell AI chips globally for first time, tapping TSMC for production

Fujitsu will begin exporting advanced artificial intelligence processors developed from the technology behind its Fugaku supercomputer, marking the Japanese company's first full-scale entry into external semiconductor sales, according to a report by Nikkei published on September 13.biz.chosun+1

A 2nm Chip for the AI Era

The chip in question is MONAKA, a 144-core Arm-based CPU built on TSMC's Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company ↘ 3.52% 2-nanometer process. Fujitsu handles the design while TSMC manufactures the chip under contract. The processor uses a 3D chiplet architecture, stacking a 2nm compute die atop separate 5nm SRAM and I/O dies, and ships in two variants: a 350-watt air-cooled part and a 500-watt liquid-cooled part.biz.chosun+3

Fujitsu plans to sell MONAKA in Japan, the United States, and the Asia-Pacific region starting in 2027, with mass production at TSMC slated to begin in March of that year. A supply agreement with Super Micro Computer ↘ 8.38% has already been finalized, and Fujitsu is pursuing deals with major U.S. cloud providers. Twenty-four companies in sectors including finance and telecommunications are currently testing prototype servers, with talks underway at roughly 40 more.sedaily+3

Revenue Targets and Server Ambitions

Beyond standalone CPUs, Fujitsu intends to sell complete AI servers equipped with MONAKA both domestically and overseas, targeting sales of 60,000 units. The company aims to reach cumulative CPU revenue of 250 billion yen by fiscal 2030. To deepen the offering, Fujitsu plans to bundle CPUs and servers with AI development and operations platforms.biz.chosun+2

The company is also looking further ahead. Fujitsu has outlined plans to outsource production of a next-generation 1.4-nanometer AI chip to Rapidus, the Japanese foundry backed by government funding, with a target date in the late 2020s.sedaily+1

A Japanese Semiconductor Comeback

Fujitsu, once a leader in Japan's semiconductor golden age of the 1980s alongside Toshiba, effectively withdrew from in-house chip production in the 2010s after losing ground to competitors in South Korea, the United States, and Taiwan. The current push is driven by surging demand for AI-capable logic semiconductors. With MONAKA, Fujitsu is betting that supercomputer-derived efficiency — the chip's core selling point is computing performance per watt — can carve out a niche against entrenched players like Intel ↘ 5.59% and AMD Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. ↘ 4.40% in the data center market.shattered+2