Japan occupied more than half of the global semiconductor market in the 1980s, but other countries have been leading in this industry ever since. While plants in other parts of the world are currently mass producing 3-nm chips, the most advanced generation produced in Japan now is the 40-nm chip. “The architecture of the 2-nm chip is totally different from that of the 3-nm one, making mass production of the former a blank-slate challenge for all players. This critical juncture is a prime opportunity to break into the market,” said SHINDO Yukiko, senior human resources manager at Rapidus.