SMBC, Fujitsu, SoftBank to Build Japan's Healthcare Platform

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMBC Group), Fujitsu Limited, and SoftBank Corp. have signed a basic agreement to form a business alliance in the health and medical fields. The core objective is to ensure the sustainability of Japan's universal health insurance system.

The tripartite alliance plans to build a Japan-developed healthcare platform. Key goals include extending the healthy life expectancy of citizens, optimizing the management of healthcare institutions, and curbing national healthcare costs.

The alliance will establish a data platform for the secure and appropriate management of medical data from healthcare information systems, based on individual consent. This data will be combined with personal health data controlled by individuals, leading to the development of AI-driven app agents that act as personalized health partners.

The platform and associated applications will be built within Japanese data centers. This initiative aims to create a secure, integrated framework supporting the entire patient journey. The companies also intend to create new businesses to streamline costs from duplicate tests, prescriptions, treatment interruptions, and preventable illnesses, targeting an approximate reduction of 5 trillion yen in national healthcare costs.

With Japan's rapidly aging population and rising healthcare demands, this project seeks to address these challenges by enhancing healthcare efficiency and enabling preventative measures through data utilization.