Oracle to invest $8 billion in Japan to meet growing AI, cloud demand

By Mike Murphy

Oracle Corp. plans to invest more than $8 billion in Japan over the next decade to meet growing demand for AI and cloud infrastructure.

In a statement late Wednesday, Oracle (ORCL) laid out plans to expand its footprint in Japan, including new personnel based there.

In particular, Oracle said it plans to build out its sovereign-cloud operations in Japan. Oracle founder and Chairman Larry Ellison has touted the sovereign cloud - a cloud-computing infrastructure designed exclusively for the security needs of government entities and their institutions - as something every government will soon want.

In March, Oracle reported better-than-expected earnings for its fiscal third quarter, as revenue from the cloud surpassed its traditional software-licensing revenue for the first time, thanks to heavy demand.

Chief Executive Safra Catz said at the time that Oracle plans to significantly expand its number of data centers, with projections of capital spending nearly doubling to about $10 billion in fiscal 2025.

Oracle shares have risen 13% year to date, outpacing the S&P 500's SPX 5.3% gain.

-Mike Murphy

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04-17-24 2225ET

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