Sakana AI Develops Domestic AI Models, Aimed at Defense and Cybersecurity

Sakana AI, Japan's leading domestic AI startup, announced it is developing its own large-scale AI model called "Sakana Sawara" with thousands of billions of parameters, starting development in November 2026. The company plans to release a small-scale model in spring 2027 followed by large-scale models, reducing dependence on US and Chinese technology. This move addresses the limitations of their current "Sakana Fugu" model, which combines overseas models and is vulnerable to foreign influence, making it a strategic initiative toward "sovereign AI."