(Cailian Press, December 26) Starting next April, Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) is poised to nearly triple its budget support for the development of advanced semiconductors and artificial intelligence (AI), reaching approximately 1.23 trillion yen (US$7.9 billion). METI's overall budget will increase by about 50% year-on-year to 3.07 trillion yen, primarily due to a significant increase in spending on chips and AI.