General Incorporated Association OpenSUSI's "First Tapeout" Project Adopted as a Subsidized Project for FY2025 by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's "AKATSUKI Project"

We are pleased to announce that the "First Tapeout" project by General Incorporated Association OpenSUSI (Representative Director: Junichi Okamura, hereinafter "OpenSUSI"), established by AIST Solutions, has been adopted as a subsidized project for FY2025 under the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry's "Regional Young Talent Discovery and Development Project Subsidy (AKATSUKI Project)." The AKATSUKI Project secretariat publicly announced the adoption results on April 24, 2026.

https://mitouteki.jp/r7/news/734/

Additionally, OpenSUSI concluded an official reseller agreement with US-based ChipFoundry (Umbralogic Technologies LLC, CEO: Jeffrey DiCorpo) on April 2, 2026.

Based on this agreement, OpenSUSI supports the process from designed chip tapeout to operational evaluation.

The AKATSUKI-adopted "First Tapeout" project will recruit creators (participants), primarily students and young engineers, from across Japan, while based in the Kyushu region, to develop a comprehensive talent development program from design to operational evaluation.

**Overview of "AKATSUKI Project" and "First Tapeout" Project**

The AKATSUKI Project is a support program for developing young talent, managed by the Information Technology Utilization Promotion Division, Commerce and Information Policy Bureau, Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, based on the government's "Startup Development 5-Year Plan" (decided in 2022).

It is positioned as a regional expansion of the IPA MITOU project, which began in 2000, and aims to discover and foster young ideas and technologies with the accompaniment of project managers (PMs) active in the region. In FY2025, 27 projects were adopted nationwide.

"First Tapeout" is a project where creators implement their ideas into semiconductor chips, undergo prototyping at a factory, and finally experience operating those chips, all in a consistent process.

By using NDA-free open-source EDA for design tools and ChipFoundry's chipIgnite shuttle service for prototyping, an environment is provided where creators can concentrate on implementing their ideas without being constrained by commercial EDA license terms or budget limitations.

**Three Pillars of Talent to be Developed by the "First Tapeout" Project**

* Talent that understands the full stack from system design to semiconductor physics (Layout) design. * Talent that becomes an architect, not just an operator. * Talent with a perspective on software/hardware division and business/investment recovery.

The aim of this project is to promote a generational shift among domestic semiconductor design engineers, secure a pool of cutting-edge talent, and motivate young people as an entry point to next-generation advanced semiconductor design education.

In the medium to long term, the project aims to produce talent capable of semiconductor planning with an eye toward Japan's advanced semiconductor manufacturing bases.

**Implementation System**

OpenSUSI will serve as the secretariat and overall PM for this project.

Actual accompaniment support for creators will be provided by active engineers from the following three PM dispatch companies, assigned as PMs, offering direct guidance based on practical experience in semiconductor design.

**[PM Dispatch Companies]**

* NSW Corporation * Hitachi Industrial Control Solutions, Ltd. * PrivaTec Co., Ltd.

(In no particular order, alphabetical by Japanese syllabary)

For implementation and operation in the Kyushu region, the Kyushu Center of the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), which established AIST Solutions, will provide operational support and regional coordination support.

In the future, new collaborative partners from industry, academia, government, finance, real estate, and local communities are scheduled to participate sequentially.

**Support through ChipFoundry's Services**

OpenSUSI has signed an official reseller agreement for the Japanese market with ChipFoundry, a US-based chip prototyping platform provider.

This allows users in Japan to utilize the chipIgnite shuttle program in Japanese, with OpenSUSI acting as the domestic point of contact.

Key services are as follows:

* Chips can be manufactured at low cost and in a short period using the MPW (Multi-Project Wafer) method, utilizing NDA-free open-source PDK compatible with SkyWater Technology's 130nm process. * Tapeout management: OpenSUSI consistently manages the schedule in Japanese, from application deadline to design data submission and manufacturing completion, ensuring reliable tapeout progress. * OpenSUSI provides a contract scheme for domestic educational and research institutions, with domestic corporations as the contracting party.

OpenSUSI holds "Unified Qualification for All Ministries and Agencies" (Zenchocho Toitsu Shikaku), indicating its eligibility to conduct business with various ministries and national agencies.