Key Highlights:
- Anthropic’s Tokyo office will focus on AI development in collaboration with the Japanese government and local institutes.
- The Japanese division will be spearheaded by Hidetoshi Tojo, who previously worked at Google Cloud and Microsoft.
- The company ranks Japan among the top global countries in AI adoption.
Anthropic has opened its first ever office in the Asia-Pacific region in Tokyo. The company has also signed a Memorandum of Cooperation with the Japan AI Safety Institute to develop this emerging technology with the highest safety standards. The office was inaugurated by Anthropic’s CEO Dario Amodei and Japanese Prime Minister Takaichi. Anthropic also sees Japan as a important node in growing its business.
Konnichiwa Japan! Says Anthropic
Anthropic’s plans for its Japanese office started in August 2025 when the company appointed Hidetoshi Tojo as the Head of the Japan unit. It also started hiring local talents for its expansion. Hidetoshi has also worked with Google Cloud and Microsoft, bringing great expertise in the field of AI.
The new office was opened in Tokyo, attended by Anthropic CEO, Japanese PM, and members of the LDP Digitization Headquarters Committee. The newly signed MoC aims to deepen ties with the Japanese government, enterprises, and cultural institutions. Speaking at the launch, CEO Dario Amodei said,
The Japanese notion of the purpose of technology is at the heart of Anthropic. It’s how we view the world, and it’s the reason we see Japan as a vital hub for growing our business.
It is worth noting that Anthropic also recently opened a new office in Bengaluru, India. The ambitions are similar to its Japanese unit, where the company will hire local talent to develop advanced AI models, while integrating local culture. It clearly shows that Anthropic is now looking at emerging Asian countries to fuel its future growth.
Anthropic’s Emphasis on AI Safety
The MoC signed by Anthropic intends to evaluate the progress of AI in a safe and controlled manner. This will be done in collaboration with the Japan AI Safety Insitute, which was founded last year to prevent the development of artificial intelligence in bad faith. This partnership is similar to Anthropic’s agreements with the US Government, UK AI Safety Institute, and other global entities.
This week we officially opened our first Asia-Pacific office in Tokyo. To mark this milestone, our CEO Dario Amodei met with Prime Minister Takaichi and Digital Minister Matsumoto to discuss how Claude can support Japan's digital transformation and AI ecosystem. pic.twitter.com/mnKRV0CuwU
— Anthropic (@AnthropicAI) October 29, 2025
Anthropic will use Japan as a central hub to expand its R&D in the Asia-Pacific region. However, the company has not shared any plans to expand further in other nearby countries. It will also use this campus to deepen its projects with Amazon Bedrock, Google Cloud Vertex, and other creative industries in the Japan-area.
Also Read: Anthropic Achieves ISO 42001 for Responsible AI Governance
Japan’s Headstart in AI Adoption
The Economic Index by Anthropic ranks Japan in the top 25% of the world in adopting AI. The company has observed that Japanese people have started to use AI in their daily workload at a good pace. The activities include research, writing, document editing, and other redundant tasks that require quality instead of human judgement.
Anthropic also added that Panasonic, Rakuten, Nomura Research Institute, and Class Method are among the first Japanese entities that have integrated Claude and other AI services in their professional workflow. The company also added that a leading clouod integrator has achieved 10x productivity gains as 99% of programming was done by Claude Code.
Anthropic mentions that the new Japanese office is a part of its long-term expanion plans in the country, and the Asia region. It is also committed to adapting the Japanese culture through contemporary art exhibitions and other local events.
