It seems Japanese giant Softbank’s OpenAI investment is paying off. SoftBank posted a $2.4 billion gain at its Vision Fund in the December quarter as a jump in the value of its OpenAI investment helped offset losses in some of its other bets. The Japanese giant, owned by one of the Japan’s richest man Masayoshi Son, said that it made a $4.2 billion gain on the value of its OpenAI investment in its fiscal third quarter, which runs to the end of December, offsetting losses stemming from the share price declines of Coupang and Chinese ride-hailing app Didi. With its Vision Fund, SoftBank has invested in AI companies it believes will be category winners, seeking to position itself at the center of the technology’s development. SoftBank’s AI push has involved a $30 billion-plus investment in ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, it now owns approximately 11% of OpenAI. OpenAI now represents one of SoftBank’s biggest holdings, alongside a roughly 90% stake in chip designer Arm Holdings Plc. OpenAI is reportedly raising a new funding round of around $100 billion. However, despite the numbers, Softbank is not as yet sure of further joining OpenAI’s funding round. SoftBank’s bet in OpenAI is based on its visibility into the startup’s technology and business model, as well as communication with top management, SoftBank Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto said. “We are investing in OpenAI with high conviction that the company will lead in developing AI,” he said. Regarding further commitments to the startup, “nothing concrete has been decided,” he said. SoftBank will stick to its policy of keeping enough liquidity on hand to cover two-years’ worth of bond repayments, Goto said.

When Japan’s richest man ‘raced’ to fulfill his promise to Sam Altman

Late last year, SoftBank Group reportedly raced to finalize a $22.5 billion funding commitment to ChaGPT-maker OpenAI. According to a report in Reuters, the company used a complex array of cash-raising methods that include liquidating major stakes and potentially tapping billions in margin loans. Investors have been focused on how SoftBank will fund its continued investments, particularly in OpenAI, which currently remains unprofitable. The Japanese investment giant has been reducing its stakes in other companies to funnel money toward OpenAI. In October, SoftBank sold its entire stake in Nvidia for $5.83 billion and between June and December, it sold $12.73 billion worth of T-Mobile stock. SoftBank has also taken out loans backed by its other holdings, such as chip designer Arm. Last month, Softbank signed a $3 billion deal to buy private equity firm DigitalBridge Group Inc, whose portfolio includes digital infrastructure companies such as AtlasEdge, DataBank, Switch and Vantage Data Centers. Prior to that announcement, SoftBank bought US chip designer Ampere Computing LLC for $6.5 billion and announced a $5.4 billion acquisition of ABB Ltd.’s robotics unit.

Softbank ‘drops’ plan to spend $50 billion on buying American company after pursuing the deal for months

In January 2026, SoftBank Group chairman Masayoshi Son reportedly ‘dropped’ plans to buy the US data center operator Switch Inc. According to a report by Bloomberg, SoftBank Group halted acquisition talks of the American data center operator Switch. Analysts term the same as a setback to founder Masayoshi Son’s ambition to roll out Stargate AI infrastructure. SoftBank’s Masayoshi is said to have pursued the Switch deal, valued at around $50 billion, for many months. Masayoshi is said to believe that direct control of Switch’s network of energy-efficient data centers would help Donald Trump’s $500 billion Stargate project to generate computing power for partner OpenAI. As per analysts, the deal would have given a much-needed boost to the Stargate Project to build US data centers. In January 2025, soon after Donald Trump’s swearing in, Softbank founder Masayoshi had pledged to deploy $100 billion “immediately” alongside OpenAI, Oracle and Abu Dhabi’s MGX.