Substrate, a San Francisco company, is trying to take on powerhouses like the Dutch company ASML. Substrate, a San Francisco company, is trying to take on powerhouses like the Dutch company ASML.

TOKYO—Atsuyoshi Koike dreams of making computer chips on the moon. First, though, he has to prove he can do it on earth. Koike is the public face of Japan’s multibillion-dollar effort to muscle back ...