Taiwan is deepening tech ties with Japan, a positive sign for both countries' AI and chip industries as they face the same worker shortages and aging populations.

• Taiwan's National Development Council took a delegation to Tokyo to study Japan's AI and quantum computing programs.
• The trip included visits to Japan's national quantum research center, Fujitsu, and NEC, with plans to work together on all-optical networks, quantum computing, and disaster-response AI.
• Taiwan signed a cooperation deal with Hankyu Hanshin Properties to help Taiwanese smart-city startups reach big companies in the Kansai region.
• A Taiwan-Japan innovation summit in Tokyo connected 46 AI and semiconductor startups with international investors and partners, alongside a new Startup Island Taiwan base in Tokyo.
• Japan plans to pour 370 trillion yen of public and private money into 17 strategic industries by 2040, a model Taiwan wants to link to its own 13-industry plan.

Outlook: Expect more joint Taiwan-Japan projects in AI, chips, and robotics aimed at fixing labor shortages in both countries.