Hokkaido, once known primarily for its farms and flowers, is now at the centre of a multibillion-dollar push to turn it into a world-class hub for advanced chipmaking. Japan is pouring huge sums into the northern island, adding a new identity as a semiconductor powerhouse to its long-held status as the country’s dairy heartland and a magnet for ski tourists and summer flower seekers.
Across Hokkaido, construction cranes now dot the landscape as new factories, research centres and tech-focused university facilities rise from former farmland. This building boom is part of Japan’s most ambitious industrial strategy in decades, aimed at reviving its semiconductor sector and reshaping its long-term economic prospects.
Residents say that aside from agriculture and tourism, Hokkaido has historically struggled to develop other major industries, giving it a reputation as a place people eventually leave in search of work. Policymakers hope the emerging tech cluster dubbed “Hokkaido Valley” by some will reverse that pattern and position Japan as a serious player in the roughly $600bn (£458bn) global chips market.
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