After investing $65B in OpenAl, Japan's richest man seeks $100B for other AI projects
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son is seeking $100 billion from Middle Eastern investors to launch a new fund focused on acquiring traditional businesses. The strategy aims to modernize these companies by integrating AI and robotics through SoftBank's specialized unit, Roze.
Why it matters
This shift represents a pivot from early-stage tech venture capital to a buyout-focused model, potentially signaling a new trend in how enterprise AI is monetized at scale.
SoftBank founder and Japan’s richest person, Masayoshi Son, is seeking up to $100 billion from Gulf investors to set up a new fund designed to buy out traditional businesses and overhaul their operations using artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, a report has said. SoftBank is facing mounting market scrutiny over its $65 billion commitment to Sam Altman’s OpenAI, especially amid delays surrounding the artificial intelligence startup’s anticipated initial public offering (IPO), the Financial Times reported.Rather than backing early-stage tech ventures, the signature playbook of SoftBank's earlier investment arms, this proposed vehicle relies on a buyout-focused framework: acquiring established, non-tech firms that have lagged behind in automation and using AI and physical robotics to boost their efficiency and corporate value.Son has reportedly engaged influential sovereign investors across the Middle East in recent weeks, including senior leadership in the United Arab Emirates, to gauge financial appetite for the strategy.The core premise focuses…
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