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Fujifilm Boosts Tape Production Fivefold to Meet AI-Driven Data Archiving Demand

Due to the massive increase in data required for AI system training and computation, Fujifilm announced it will expand tape manufacturing capacity fivefold at its Kanagawa factory in Odawara, Japan, with an investment of about $64 million. Tape remains an effective medium for long-term and large-scale data archiving because of its low cost and offline security.

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23 Daily — Fujifilm announced it will invest approximately 10 billion yen (around $63 million) to increase its magnetic tape production capacity fivefold at its Kanagawa Odawara factory in Japan by fiscal year 2028. The move responds to a surge in data archiving demand driven by generative artificial intelligence (AI). Fujifilm cited exponential growth worldwide in data needs linked to AI as the key reason for this expansion.

Fujifilm's Largest Investment in Dedicated LTO Tape Facilities

This project, spanning fiscal years 2026 through 2028, represents Fujifilm's largest investment to date in dedicated Linear Tape-Open (LTO) tape production. It focuses on manufacturing the latest-generation 'FUJIFILM LTO Ultrium 10' tapes, which utilize advanced 'fine hybrid magnetic particles' technology combining barium ferrite and strontium ferrite. Since releasing its first LTO Ultrium tape in 2000, Fujifilm has consistently increased storage capacities for each generation, both compressed and uncompressed.

Magnetic Tape Remains Favored for Low Cost and Offline Security

Although mainstream consumers abandoned tape media decades ago, enterprise customers, especially major cloud service providers, continue to rely on tape to back up vast data archives. Tape storage offers relatively low-cost, large-volume capacity and can be physically disconnected and stored offline—in drawers, vaults, or separate facilities—reducing exposure to cybersecurity threats like ransomware. Fujifilm highlights tape’s role as an air-gapped last line of defense against sophisticated cyberattacks.

Editor's take: Significant capacity boost signals AI-driven archival opportunity

Fujifilm's decision to greatly expand magnetic tape production amid the AI boom underscores tape’s enduring relevance for enterprise data backup and long-term storage. For entrepreneurs, this suggests a substantial and growing market in data archiving solutions, particularly addressing storage needs generated by AI training data volumes. Market validation can come from tracking cloud data center demand and technological advancements in tape storage capacity and performance.

All stories from October 31, 2026