Akihabara News (Tokyo) — Google and Facebook are jointly investing in and constructing a subsea cable that will run from Japan to Southeast Asia to provide high-speed network connections.
The fiberoptic cable system, called Apricot, will connect Japan, Taiwan, Guam, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Singapore, at a length of nearly 12,000 kilometers.
For Facebook, Apricot will improve the reliability of its platform with fast load times and strong connections for calls.
Google, on the other hand, will benefit from low latency and higher bandwidth capacity for data centers, improving Google cloud computing.
Apricot will meet the growing demand for data in Japan and Southeast Asia, including 4G, 5G, and wired broadband connections. It will also be compatible with existing cable systems such as the Echo and Bifrost cables.
This development comes as a natural continuation of Japan’s progression in technology, with researchers at the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology achieving a record internet speed of 319 terabits per second (tbps) in July 2021.
This new record almost doubles the previous record of 178 tbps from a collaborative effort by researchers in Japan and from the United Kingdom at University College London.
Apricot is expected to be completed and put into use in 2024, with an initial design capacity of 190 tbps.
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