NTT Data: The first Japanese Vendor for OpenAI Services
The race to commercialise Gen AI technologies in enterprise settings has intensified as NTT Data has announced a strategic alliance with OpenAI.
The partnership is a milestone for Asia's AI market, with NTT Data becoming the first official distributor of ChatGPT Enterprise in Japan.
This alliance comes at a challenging time for enterprise AI adoption in Asia, where businesses have demonstrated keen interest in deploying Gen AI but have faced implementation hurdles, including data security concerns, integration complexities and talent shortages.
Therefore, the collaboration aims to merge NTT Data's system integration expertise with OpenAI's Gen AI technology, which uses machine learning (ML) models to create new content including text, images and code based on training data.
This marriage of technological innovation with implementation know-how addresses a key gap in the market where many organisations possess theoretical understanding of AI's potential but struggle with practical deployment.
NTT Data as the first distributor of OpenAI in Japan
NTT Data plans to provide OpenAI's acceleration programme to 100 major companies initially, focusing on supporting use case creation with specialist staff.
The programme helps companies integrate AI tools into their workflows through tailored implementation strategies, addressing the common challenge of translating AI capabilities into business value.
The partnership also shows the expansion of NTT Data's AI capabilities, which have been developing under its ‘SmartAgent’ concept – a framework where AI systems autonomously handle tasks based on business instructions.
The partners will initially focus on the Japanese market before expanding to European countries including Spain, North America and the Asia-Pacific region.
NTT Data and OpenAI delivering enterprise-grade AI implementation capabilities
As the first OpenAI distributor in Japan, NTT Data will create implementation frameworks for ChatGPT Enterprise – a version of the Gen AI service designed for corporate use with enhanced security features and customisation options.
The service allows companies to train AI systems on their internal data and knowledge bases, creating customised AI assistants that understand company-specific information and processes.
NTT Data will introduce ChatGPT Enterprise to its own workforce across global operations, building expertise in enterprise deployment methods while using the technology to transform its internal operations.
“Gen AI has the potential to fundamentally transform the very nature of corporate activities,” says NTT Data’s President and Chief Executive Officer, Yutaka Sasaki.
“By combining the global system integration know-how that the NTT Data Group boasts with OpenAI's world-leading AI technology, we will further accelerate our customers' business transformation and contribute to the realisation of a sustainable society.”
AI agents from NTT Data transforming capabilities across multiple industries
NTT Data and OpenAI will develop specialised AI agents, tailored for specific industries including finance, manufacturing, distribution, healthcare and public sector organisations.
These industry-specific agents will be built by combining OpenAI's base models with NTT Data's domain expertise.
The company has already begun large-scale implementation of OpenAI API, the programming interface that allows developers to build applications using OpenAI's models.
“By combining our knowledge of each industry with OpenAI's cutting-edge models, we will develop AI agents that can act on behalf of people in various businesses and industries, providing a new labour force,” NTT Data explained.
This approach aligns with NTT Data's ‘SmartAgent’ concept, which envisions AI systems that can handle complex workflows independently after receiving high-level instructions from human operators.
The Centre of Excellence
To support the partnership, NTT Data will establish an ‘OpenAI Center of Excellence’ (CoE), a dedicated organisational unit focused on OpenAI-related services.
The centre will serve as a knowledge hub for implementing OpenAI technologies in enterprise environments.
NTT Data claims to have “tens of thousands of practical Gen AI talents” within its workforce, which will form the foundation for this specialist team.
These specialists will help clients navigate the technical and organisational challenges of AI adoption.
In addition to technical support, NTT Data will assign consultants specialising in Gen AI to provide comprehensive assistance throughout implementation, utilisation and operational phases.
NTT Data and OpenAI’s future together
NTT Data plans to expand its service offerings centred on the SmartAgent concept, addressing business challenges such as workforce shortages and productivity limitations.
Tadao Nagasaki, Chief Executive Officer of OpenAI Japan, LLC, says: “OpenAI aims to provide AI that is safe and easy for everyone to use through cutting-edge technology, and contributes to improving productivity.
“The introduction of ChatGPT Enterprise and OpenAI API by the NTT Data Group is a large-scale business transformation initiative with an eye on both domestic and overseas, and we are deeply sympathetic to this.
“We hope that this introduction will lead to further expansion of the use of Gen AI, leading to improved business efficiency and the creation of new innovations.”
NTT Data Group envisions a future where Gen AI transforms both its own operations and those of its customers through governance and proactive promotion of AI utilisation.
“We will continue to deepen our collaboration and together pave the way for the future of AI use in Japanese companies,” Nagasaki said.
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