SoftBank · OpenAI · Japan · Tom's Hardware
SoftBank seeks $100 billion for AI-refined projects from Middle Eastern investors
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Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank, is seeking up to $100 billion from Gulf investors to establish a fund that would acquire companies and improve their operations using artificial intelligence and robotics, .
Key facts
- Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund and Abu Dhabi's Mubadala participated in SoftBank's original $100 billion Vision Fund in 2017
- As of June, the company's net asset value stood at ¥72.3 trillion ($456.57 billion), while its loan-to-value ratio was 13%, considerably below its normal operating limit of 25%
- Last month, SoftBank raised more than $11 billion through the largest junk bond issuance on record, with yields reaching 9.75% (i.e., expensive borrowing as risks are high)
- Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank, is seeking up to $100 billion from Gulf investors to establish a fund that would acquire companies and improve their operations using artificial intelligence
Summary
Unlike SoftBank's previous investment vehicles, which primarily financed technology companies, the proposed fund would purchase established businesses and introduce AI and other advanced technologies to improve their operations in a bid to improve their value, which is a relatively novel model to make money on AI. Roze, SoftBank's robotics and physical AI division, would reportedly play a major role in these transformations, though exact details remain unclear. SoftBank has already committed approximately $65 billion to OpenAI, and the company remains the crown jewel of its investment strategy. Son has previously attracted substantial financing from Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds.