Japan is considering U.S. military AI software to accelerate command decisions as it restructures alliance warfighting with Washington ahead of a year-end rewrite of its core security documents. Asahi Shimbun, cited by Anadolu and UPI, reported that Tokyo is evaluating Palantir’s Maven Smart System for Self-Defense Forces command-and-control; Japanese media have also named Anduril’s Lattice platform in the discussion, though no decision has been announced. Gen. Yoshihide Yoshida, chief of staff of the Joint Staff, said in a July 3 briefing that no Palantir system had been approved but that AI was needed urgently to match the faster “battle rhythm” of modern war, adding that sensitive Japanese data must remain under Japanese control.
The debate sits inside a larger command overhaul: Japan established the Joint Operations Command in March 2025, while Washington has been upgrading U.S. Forces Japan into a joint force headquarters. Tokyo is also funding a domestic layer, with Sakana AI announcing a Defense Ministry research contract in March on faster information fusion for command systems. The direction extends beyond software: Japan has stood up a National Intelligence Bureau, fielded its first Tomahawk-capable destroyer, and cast AI, drones and long-range strike as tools for a harsher regional order in its latest defense white paper.
