INSTITUTION PROFILE / DRONES AND ROBOTICS
Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI)
The Japanese ministry that holds the “policy and budget” keys for robotics (but does not decide flight or certification)
METI is Japan’s industrial-policy ministry. It builds neither robots nor drones. For robotics, its role is to pull together the government’s policy, turn it into budget projects, and handle industrial standards (JIS) and export control. Drone flight rules and air-taxi review belong to MLIT, and radio to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC); METI cannot decide them. This profile looks at one question: what METI can decide about robots and drones, and what it cannot.
What this article covers
- METI in 30 seconds
- What kind of body it is: the four types of influence
- What it does for drones and robotics
- How far its influence reaches (powers and geography)
- Who it works with
- Outlook
- Glossary, references and claim-to-source audit
1. METI in 30 seconds
FULL NAMEMinistry of Economy, Trade and Industry
METIRobotics is handled by the AI Robotics Office in the Commerce and Information Policy Bureau
METIRobotics is handled by the AI Robotics Office in the Commerce and Information Policy Bureau
COUNTRYJapanBased in Kasumigaseki, Tokyo
TYPE OF BODYCentral ministry (policy)Covers industry, trade and energy policy. NEDO is a separate body it oversees
ESTABLISHED6 January 2001The date its establishment act took effect, in the central-government reorganisation
STAFF8,068 (authorised)Total authorised staff at the end of FY2026, up 55 from 8,013. Not the number in post
BUDGET¥3,069.3 billionMETI-related total, FY2026 initial budget, enacted 7 April 2026. General account: ¥375.4 billion
ROLE IN DRONES AND ROBOTICSPolicy, budget, standards, export controlIt does not decide drone flight or certification
REACHJapan’s industry and budgetExport control reaches firms exporting from Japan
The one thing to grasp first
METI’s influence is the power of policy and budget, not of binding law. The “AI Robotics Strategy” of 26 March 2026 is posted on METI’s robotics page, and the contact is the AI Robotics Office of its Commerce and Information Policy Bureau, but it was decided by an inter-ministerial liaison council Sourced.
One more point. The strategy states that it does not directly cover drones and unmanned aircraft, because their market, technology and institutional conditions differ greatly by field. It takes up only cross-cutting issues such as technology base, standardisation and training Sourced. Drone flight rules are set by MLIT under the Aviation Act.
2. What kind of body it is: the four types of influence
The institutions that appear in drone and robotics articles do not build machines themselves. What differs is the route by which they influence the industry, and that gives four types. METI spans policy, by setting direction, and funding, by turning policy into budget projects.
METI has three tools. (1) Setting direction: strategies and roadmaps. (2) Turning policy into budget: budget requests and budget projects. (3) Handling standards and exports: JIS under the Industrial Standardization Act and export control under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act. The Act for the Establishment of METI lists the development and promotion of industrial standards, the promotion of exports and imports, and the control of foreign exchange linked to trade among the ministry’s duties Sourced.
3. What it does for drones and robotics
In 2026 the government’s robot policy moved to a new framework built around AI. The path from direction to the field has four stages, shown below.
| Area | System or document | What it covers | Status (checked 25 October 2026) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Policy direction | AI Robotics Strategy Decided 26 March 2026 (partly amended 27 May) | The main subject is “multi-purpose robots” that combine movement and work. Targets: more than 30% of the world market (about ¥20 trillion) and about 10 million AI robots in Japan by 2040. Drones and unmanned aircraft are not directly covered | Government direction and targets Not yet confirmed |
| Budget (foundation models) | Multimodal foundation-model development project with AI robots and physical AI in view | ¥387.3 billion in the FY2026 initial budget (new). The FY2027 budget request is ¥896.4 billion | FY2026 enacted. FY2027 is a request Sourced |
| Budget (strategy and hub) | AI Robotics Strategy project; AI Robotics core hub project | In the FY2027 request: ¥320.9 billion for the strategy project and ¥133.3 billion for the core hub project (both new) | Requests, not enacted amounts Not yet confirmed |
| Budget (technology base) | Digital robot systems technology base project | ¥230 million in the FY2026 initial budget (the same as the year before) | FY2026 enacted Sourced |
| Adoption and spread | Robot-friendly environments, the RING project, the Robot Awards | Efforts to adapt facilities so robots can use them; a national network helping small firms adopt robots (launched July 2025); the call for the 12th Robot Awards opened in March 2026 | Under way Sourced |
| Industrial standards | Industrial Standardization Act (the JIS Act) | The Japanese Industrial Standards Committee sits in METI, and the competent minister needs its vote before setting an industrial standard (JIS). The establishment act lists the development and promotion of industrial standards among METI’s duties | In operation Sourced |
| Export control | Security trade control under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act | METI receives export licence applications. METI says it does not itself decide whether a given good or technology is controlled (classification); the exporter judges | In operation Sourced |
| Safety certification | Measures in the AI Robotics Strategy | The strategy lists developing a safety certification system and studying the shape of safety regulation, linking them to adoption support (for example, making compliance a requirement for support) | At the study stage Not yet confirmed |
A materials engineer’s view: parts and materials are part of the “supply base”
The strategy sets out strengthening the design and manufacturing capacity for the functional modules multi-purpose robots need, and for key components such as motors, reducers and sensors. It also says it will push standardisation of functional modules, interfaces, data formats and safety arguments Sourced. For makers of parts and materials, being named in national policy as a target of support, rather than only through a robot maker, matters. The conditions and amounts of any individual support are set in each call for proposals, and we have not checked them. Inference
4. How far its influence reaches (powers and geography)
| Aspect | What METI has | What it does not have |
|---|---|---|
| Powers | Drafting industrial policy. Planning and running budget requests and projects. The procedure for setting industrial standards (JIS). The window for export licences under the Foreign Exchange Act | Drone registration, certification and flight permission (MLIT). Radio rules (MIC). Enacting budgets and laws (the National Diet). Setting international standards (international bodies such as ISO) |
| Geography | Japan’s industry and budget. Export control reaches firms exporting from Japan | Direct regulation of foreign firms. Other countries’ policy |
| Binding force | The Foreign Exchange Act and the JIS Act are laws. The strategy and roadmaps are a government “direction” and have no binding force in themselves | Power to oblige private firms to meet the strategy’s targets (such as 10 million units by 2040) |
| Scale | 8,068 authorised staff at the end of FY2026. FY2026 initial budget for METI as a whole: ¥3,069.3 billion (general account ¥375.4 billion) | No staff or budget total is published for robotics alone. The FY2027 staffing request includes “stronger structure to promote AI robotics”, but the number is not broken out |
How to read the numbers
The 8,068 is an authorised number of posts, not the number in post. The ¥3,069.3 billion covers METI as a whole, and most of it sits in the Energy Special Account (¥2,533.3 billion). The ¥387.3 billion foundation-model project is one project within it, not a robotics-only total. We have not checked who receives the money or how much goes to uses other than robots. The FY2027 figures of ¥896.4 billion, ¥320.9 billion and ¥133.3 billion are all “budget requests”, not enacted amounts (they are settled after coordination with the Ministry of Finance and a vote in the Diet) Not yet confirmed.
5. Who it works with
We list only relationships stated on METI’s official pages.
| Organisation | Relationship to METI | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Inter-ministerial liaison council on AI robotics | Decided the AI Robotics Strategy. METI posts it on its own robot-policy page, and its AI Robotics Office is the contact | METI robotics page; AI Robotics Strategy |
| NEDO (New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization) | A national R&D agency whose supervising minister is the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry; allocates R&D funds as a separate body. The strategy cites a NEDO survey for Japan’s share of the world industrial-robot market. See also our NEDO profile | NEDO organisational overview; AI Robotics Strategy |
| Robot Revolution and Industrial IoT Initiative and similar bodies | Carry the RING project (launched July 2025) and the training council (CHERSI), which METI’s page introduces | METI robotics page |
| MLIT and MIC | MLIT handles Aviation Act procedures for drones and MIC handles radio equipment; METI does not. See also our MLIT profile | MLIT Civil Aviation Bureau page |
* We do not list individual robot or drone makers (selections, subsidy amounts), because we did not check METI sources for them. Being named in national policy does not mean the state endorses a company.
6. Outlook
| What can be read from the evidence | Primary information it rests on | Category |
|---|---|---|
| The FY2027 budget request is ¥1,991.3 billion for AX (AI, semiconductors and robots), including ¥896.4 billion for foundation-model development and, as new items, ¥320.9 billion for the strategy project and ¥133.3 billion for the core hub | METI’s FY2027 budget request summary (submitted 31 August 2026). Requests, not enacted amounts | Not yet confirmed |
| Development of a safety certification system and a study of safety regulation will proceed linked to adoption support | AI Robotics Strategy (it speaks of making compliance a requirement for support) | Not yet confirmed |
| The goals are more than 30% of the world market (about ¥20 trillion) and about 10 million AI robots in Japan by 2040 | The targets in the AI Robotics Strategy | Not yet confirmed |
| Drone rules themselves will be set by changes to MLIT’s systems; the robot strategy bears on drones only indirectly, through parts, standards and people | The strategy says it does not directly cover drones and unmanned aircraft, and takes up cross-cutting issues of technology base, standardisation and training | Inference |
| Once a safety certification system exists, support such as subsidies will probably require compliance with it | The strategy says it will link standards to adoption support (“making compliance with the safety certification system a requirement”) | Inference |
7. Glossary
- AI Robotics Strategy
- The strategy for putting AI-driven robots into society, decided on 26 March 2026 by the inter-ministerial liaison council and posted on METI’s page.
- Physical AI
- AI that understands the real world through cameras and sensors and moves a body such as a robot.
- Multi-purpose robot
- A robot not limited to one task: legged, wheeled or other mobile robots that combine movement and work in varied settings. The main subject of the strategy.
- Robot foundation model
- A large AI model that many kinds of robots can share. The foundation-model development project supports it.
- Budget request
- The request a ministry submits to the Ministry of Finance for next year’s budget. It is distinct from an enacted budget. The FY2027 requests were submitted at the end of August 2026.
- Initial and supplementary budgets
- The budget set at the start of a fiscal year, and extra budgets added during it. The FY2026 initial budget was enacted on 7 April 2026.
- JIS (Japanese Industrial Standards)
- Japan’s industrial standards under the Industrial Standardization Act, set after a vote by METI’s standards council.
- Export control
- A licensing system under the Foreign Exchange and Foreign Trade Act for exports of goods and technology important to security.
- SIer (system integrator)
- A firm that fits robots into a site and runs them. The strategy lists strengthening this function.
- CoE (centre of excellence)
- A hub that advances R&D, data gathering, validation, standardisation and training together. The strategy calls for building one.
8. References
- METI Robots (policy page, in Japanese): direction of robot policy, posting of the AI Robotics Strategy, adoption and spread measures, contact office. Page shows last update of 6 April 2026. https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/mono_info_service/mono/robot/
- Inter-ministerial liaison council on AI robotics AI Robotics Strategy (in Japanese; decided 26 March 2026, partly amended 27 May 2026; published by the Cabinet Secretariat). https://www.cas.go.jp/jp/seisaku/ai_robo/dai3/shiryo1.pdf
- METI Overview of METI-related FY2026 budgets (in Japanese; the FY2026 initial budget was enacted on 7 April 2026). https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/index.html
- METI Summary of METI’s FY2026 initial budget (in Japanese): budget amounts, the foundation-model project (¥387.3 billion) and the technology-base project (¥230 million). https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/pdf/01.pdf
- METI Main organisation and staffing for FY2026 (in Japanese): total authorised staff of 8,068 at the end of FY2026. https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/pdf/05.pdf
- METI Summary of METI’s FY2027 budget requests (in Japanese; submitted 31 August 2026): AX, foundation models, strategy project and core hub. https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosangaisan/fy2027/pdf/01.pdf
- METI Main organisation and staffing requests for FY2027 (in Japanese): the staffing request including stronger AI robotics promotion. https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosangaisan/fy2027/pdf/05.pdf
- e-Gov Law Search Act for the Establishment of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (in Japanese; Act No. 99 of 1999; in force 6 January 2001; duties). https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/411AC0000000099
- e-Gov Law Search Industrial Standardization Act (in Japanese; Act No. 185 of 1949): the standards committee and the setting of standards. https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/324AC0000000185
- e-Gov Law Search Cabinet Order on the Number of Staff of Administrative Bodies (in Japanese): METI’s authorised staff. https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/344CO0000000121
- METI Security Trade Control (in Japanese): export licence applications, and the note that METI does not carry out classification. https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/anpo/index.html
- MLIT Civil Aviation Bureau No-fly airspace and flight methods for unmanned aircraft (in Japanese): laws to observe besides the Aviation Act, such as MIC’s radio equipment rules. https://www.mlit.go.jp/koku/koku_fr10_000041.html
- NEDO Organisational overview (in Japanese): the supervising minister is the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry. https://www.nedo.go.jp/introducing/kihon.html
9. Claim-to-source audit
| Claim in the article | Category | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Posting of the AI Robotics Strategy and the contact office (AI Robotics Office), the listing of the 28 August 2026 revision, adoption and spread measures, the RING project, the Robot Awards | Sourced | Reference 1 https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/mono_info_service/mono/robot/ |
| The decision-maker of the strategy (the liaison council), its date (26 March 2026) and the 27 May amendment, that drones and unmanned aircraft are not directly covered, the targets (more than 30%, about ¥20 trillion, 10 million units by 2040), key components and standardisation, the safety certification study | Sourced | Reference 2 https://www.cas.go.jp/jp/seisaku/ai_robo/dai3/shiryo1.pdf |
| The FY2026 initial budget was enacted on 7 April 2026 | Sourced | Reference 3 https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/index.html |
| METI-related total of ¥3,069.3 billion (general account ¥375.4 billion, Energy Special Account ¥2,533.3 billion), the foundation-model project of ¥387.3 billion (new), the technology-base project of ¥230 million | Sourced | Reference 4 https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/pdf/01.pdf |
| Total authorised staff of 8,068 at the end of FY2026 (up 55 from 8,013) | Sourced | Reference 5 https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosan/yosan_fy2026/pdf/05.pdf |
| The FY2027 requests (AX ¥1,991.3 billion, foundation models ¥896.4 billion, strategy project ¥320.9 billion, core hub ¥133.3 billion) | Sourced | Reference 6 https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosangaisan/fy2027/pdf/01.pdf |
| The FY2027 staffing request includes stronger AI robotics promotion | Sourced | Reference 7 https://www.meti.go.jp/main/yosangaisan/fy2027/pdf/05.pdf |
| The establishment act took effect on 6 January 2001; industrial standards, trade promotion and foreign-exchange control are among its duties | Sourced | Reference 8 https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/411AC0000000099 |
| The standards committee sits in METI, and a committee vote precedes setting a standard | Sourced | Reference 9 https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/324AC0000000185 |
| METI’s authorised staff (8,068 in the main provisions) | Sourced | Reference 10 https://laws.e-gov.go.jp/law/344CO0000000121 |
| The window for export licences, and that METI does not carry out classification | Sourced | Reference 11 https://www.meti.go.jp/policy/anpo/index.html |
| MIC’s radio equipment rules are among the laws to observe besides the Aviation Act (MLIT’s page) | Sourced | Reference 12 https://www.mlit.go.jp/koku/koku_fr10_000041.html |
| NEDO’s supervising minister is the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry | Sourced | Reference 13 https://www.nedo.go.jp/introducing/kihon.html |
| Enacted amounts of the FY2027 requests, achievement of the strategy’s targets, and when the safety certification system will be in place | Not yet confirmed | No fixed amount or date is stated in References 2 or 6. This article does not estimate them |
| Staff and budget for robotics alone, and the recipients of the foundation-model project | Not yet confirmed | No totals or breakdowns in References 4, 5 or 6. This article does not estimate them |
| The content of the strategy’s revision of 28 August 2026 | Not yet confirmed | Reference 1 shows that a revision was posted, but this article read the text partly amended on 27 May. The August text has not been read |
| The grouping into four types of institution, the four-stage arrangement of the flow, and the can-decide and cannot-decide split | Our calculation | Our own arrangement of the sources |
| The readings in sections 3 and 6 (position of parts and materials makers, relation to drone rules, linking of subsidies and certification) | Inference | This article’s reading of the wording of Reference 2 |
Last updated 25 October 2026 / Troy Technical
Figures come from official METI material, the AI Robotics Strategy published by the Cabinet Secretariat, and e-Gov Law Search. This field moves quickly, and the status of each item is as of the date checked. Items marked “Inference” are this article’s reading of the primary information.