Anthropic has signed NEC Corporation as its first Japan-based global partner, deploying Claude AI to approximately 30,000 NEC Group employees worldwide.

The strategic collaboration positions NEC to build one of Japan's largest AI-native engineering organizations. The companies will jointly develop secure, industry-specific AI products targeting Japanese finance, manufacturing, and local government sectors.

"This long-term partnership with Anthropic enables NEC to maximize the potential of AI in the Japanese market," said Toshifumi Yoshizaki, Executive Officer and COO of NEC Corporation. "Together, we aim to create solutions that meet the high safety, reliability, and quality standards demanded by companies and public administration in Japan."

Product integration across NEC services

NEC is integrating Claude into its Security Operations Center services to defend against sophisticated cybersecurity threats. Claude will also power the next-generation cybersecurity service NEC currently provides to customers.

Claude, including Claude Opus 4.7 and Claude Code, will be incorporated into NEC BluStellar Scenario. This program provides consulting, AI tools, security, and digital infrastructure to businesses, starting with data-driven management and customer experience offerings.

Internally, NEC will establish a Center of Excellence to develop AI-enabled engineering capabilities. The company receives technical enablement and training from Anthropic as part of the partnership.

Client Zero strategy drives adoption

As part of its Client Zero initiative, NEC serves as its own first customer before offering technology to clients. The company will expand Claude Cowork usage across internal business operations under this approach.

NEC aims to build one of Japan's largest AI-native engineering teams, with engineers using Claude Code in their daily work. This internal deployment will inform the joint development of customer-facing AI solutions.

Claude is now being deployed to NEC Group employees globally. The companies have begun joint development of industry-specific AI solutions for the Japanese market, focusing initially on finance, manufacturing, and cybersecurity applications.