--- title: Global Kigyo - TIME - Partner Content - Building Japan’s Digital Backbone description: Building Japan’s Digital Backbone canonical: https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/ article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2026-08-31T10:32:17.727Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-31T10:15:50.121Z article:section: Paid Partner Content og:title: Global Kigyo - TIME - Partner Content - Building Japan’s Digital Backbone og:description: Building Japan’s Digital Backbone og:url: https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fc6eb23e6d41a8b/6a9553b2448ea6545b595ed1/Page_5_Image_1_thumb.png?branch=production&width=900&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 900 og:image:height: 506 og:image:alt: TIME og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Global Kigyo - TIME - Partner Content - Building Japan’s Digital Backbone twitter:description: Building Japan’s Digital Backbone twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt3fc6eb23e6d41a8b/6a9553b2448ea6545b595ed1/Page_5_Image_1_thumb.png?branch=production&width=900&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 --- # Building Japan’s Digital Backbone  ##### NTT-AT is turning breakthrough technologies into real-world solutions.  The frontier of Japan’s data infrastructure, from data center connectivity to industrial edge computing, is being shaped by companies at the forefront of research and development. Companies like NTT Advanced Technology (NTT-AT). As a member of NTT, one of the world’s largest telecommunications groups, NTT-AT transforms cutting-edge research into practical solutions that help enterprises build, operate and optimize next-generation digital infrastructure. NTT-AT’s flagship product is Beluganos, an operating system built for white-box switches—network devices prized for their cost-effectiveness and high customizability. In addition to supporting Layer 2 packet switching and Layer 3 routing functions, Beluganos enables Layer 1 optical transport control, providing unified management and operations across the entire network. This unique capability ties in with NTT’s All-Photonics Network (APN) and its IOWN initiative. As demand for high-performance data center interconnection grows, Beluganos provides a firm foundation for next-generation AI infrastructure, helping deliver the ultra-low latency and high capacity required to connect resources at scale. “We believe the All-Photonics Network will be the key to connecting distributed data centers into a single ecosystem,” said NTT-AT’s chief AI officer, Kenji Yamada. Building AI-ready infrastructure is only part of the challenge. Organizations have to ensure that critical systems remain reliable and effective. NTT-AT is able to address these needs through technologies ranging from @DeAnoS, an anomaly detection solution used in mission-critical environments, to WinActor, one of Japan’s leading robotic process automation (RPA) solutions. WinActor is essential for organizations looking to automate routine tasks, particularly when using legacy systems. Looking ahead, NTT-AT is enhancing the front-end capabilities of WinActor with generative AI, enabling it to work on non-routine tasks and advanced workflows. By combining AI-driven reasoning with reliable automation, WinActor is helping organizations unlock the next stage of their digital transformation. “AI is the driving force behind a new paradigm across every industry,” said Yamada. “Over the next five years, we expect to see tremendous growth in AI technologies. At NTT-AT, we are committed to accelerating that transformation.”  ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/"},"headline":"Building Japan’s Digital Backbone","datePublished":"2026-08-31T10:32:17.727Z","dateModified":"2026-08-31T10:15:50.121Z","description":"Building Japan’s Digital Backbone","url":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[],"articleSection":"Paid Partner Content","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/branded-content/global-kigyo/building-japans-digital-backbone/","name":"Building Japan’s Digital Backbone"}}]}] ```