NTT Data and Anthropic reportedly near deal on a 500MW Osaka datacenter: what's reported and what isn't confirmed

Japan's Nikkei reported on October 13, 2026 that NTT Data Group is in the final stages of talks to build a datacenter in Osaka for Anthropic. According to the report, the site would have up to 500 megawatts of power intake capacity, cost up to ¥1 trillion (about $6.3 billion) to build, and could start partial operation as early as 2028. It would be Anthropic's first dedicated facility in Japan and one of the country's largest AI datacenters. It's still a report, though. Neither company has announced a deal.

This story is based on Nikkei's report as carried by Reuters and other outlets, checked October 14, 2026. Nikkei's own article is paywalled, so its details come from those reports.

The short version

• Who: NTT Data Group, part of Japan's NTT telecom group, and Anthropic.
• What (reported): a datacenter in Osaka built for Anthropic, with up to 500MW of power intake capacity.
• Cost (reported): up to ¥1 trillion for construction. GPU servers would add more.
• When (reported): a signed agreement targeted by the end of fiscal 2026 (March 31, 2027); partial operation as early as 2028.
• Status: NTT declined to comment to Reuters. Neither NTT Data nor Anthropic had announced anything as of October 14, 2026.

What did Nikkei report?

Reuters summarized Nikkei's report on October 13, saying it cited multiple sources. Reuters said NTT Data is "in the final stages of talks" to build the Osaka datacenter for Anthropic, and that construction costs "could reach 1 trillion yen." The site would have "power intake capacity of up to 500 megawatts," with partial operations starting as early as 2028. Reuters didn't say it had independently confirmed the report.

Other outlets that summarized Nikkei added details:

• Location: Japanese coverage places the site in the coastal area of southern Osaka Prefecture. No city has been named.
• Total cost: The Next Web, summarizing Nikkei, said adding large numbers of GPU-equipped servers would bring the total to several trillion yen. The ¥1 trillion figure covers construction only.
• Power: Getting 500MW from the existing grid would be slow, so the partners would first study alternatives such as on-site generation and fuel cells, per Nikkei as summarized by The Next Web and W.Media.
• Other sites: Nikkei also reported that Anthropic is looking at datacenters in other Asian countries, according to The Next Web.

Last verified: October 14, 2026

What have the companies said?

So far, nothing on the record. Reuters reported that NTT declined to comment and that the NTT Group was "not immediately available for comment." The Next Web said both NTT Data and Anthropic declined to comment to Nikkei. As of October 14, 2026, we found no statement about the project on Anthropic's newsroom or in NTT's investor disclosures.

That matters for how to read the numbers. The 500MW, ¥1 trillion and 2028 figures are Nikkei's, sourced to unnamed people, and the deal hasn't been signed. Terms can change before a final agreement, and talks can fall apart.

How big is 500MW?

It's large for Japan and mid-sized for the current AI build-out. NTT Data says it already operates more than 1,600MW of datacenter capacity across several countries, per The Next Web and W.Media, so one 500MW site would be a big addition to its own portfolio.

Compared with Anthropic's existing compute deals, it's modest. Anthropic has announced arrangements measured in gigawatts with Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Nvidia, and AMD, plus $50 billion for its own US datacenters with Fluidstack. Our gigawatt datacenter explainer puts those numbers side by side. Anthropic also rents all of SpaceX's Colossus 1 site in Memphis, which our story on the SpaceX compute deal covers. What's different about Osaka is location. It would be Anthropic's first dedicated capacity in Japan, rather than more capacity in the US.

Why Japan?

Japan is an important market for Anthropic. It opened its first Asia-Pacific office in Tokyo in October 2025 and signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Japan AI Safety Institute at the same time. Its announcement named Rakuten, Nomura Research Institute, Panasonic and Classmethod as customers. Local capacity could make it easier to serve those customers, and Japanese companies and government agencies that want their data processed in Japan. Neither company has said that's the reason, though.

Japan is also pushing to attract datacenters. The Next Web, citing Nikkei, reported that the government wants ¥32.7 trillion in public and private investment in datacenters, cloud computing and battery storage by 2035, and that other large sites are planned in Akita and Kagoshima. For background on Anthropic's business and its dependence on cloud and compute partners, see our Anthropic explainer.

What's confirmed, reported and uncertain

• Confirmed: Anthropic opened a Tokyo office in October 2025 (Anthropic). NTT declined to comment on the report (Reuters).
• Reported (Nikkei, October 13, 2026, via Reuters and others): final-stage talks; Osaka location; up to 500MW; construction costs up to ¥1 trillion; signing targeted by March 31, 2027; partial operation as early as 2028; first dedicated Anthropic facility in Japan; on-site power and fuel cells under study.
• Uncertain: whether a deal is signed; the exact site; who pays for and owns the facility and its servers; which chips it would use; and whether the 2028 date holds given the power constraints.