Sovereign AI Investment
SoftBank Group
A Japanese technology investment conglomerate that has cumulatively invested over $60 billion in OpenAI for an approximately 13% stake, chairs the $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure project, owns roughly 90% of Arm Holdings, and separately invested $2 billion in Intel.
Additional Intelligence Signals
Patent citation lineage, earnings-call mentions, and federal contract disclosures — automatically collected, not yet visible anywhere else on the site.
Sources
Every claim traced to a primary source — evidence, recent activity, and insider filing behavior, all in one place.
Evidence
2 sources · 77% avg. source confidence
- Cryptobriefing — SoftBank's cumulative OpenAI investment surpasses $60 billion for a 13% stake75% source confidence
- International Finance — SoftBank sold its entire NVIDIA stake to help fund its OpenAI investment78% source confidence
Dependency Map
What SoftBank Group depends on below, and who depends on SoftBank Group above — click any node to make it the new center, 3 levels deep.
Connection type
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The Story So Far (last 6 months)
Auto-generated from this entity's dated milestones, relationship updates, and sourced evidence — not AI-written, just sorted.
Emerging Signals
SoftBank Sold Its Entire NVIDIA Stake to Fund an AI Lab Bet
HighSoftBank sold its entire NVIDIA stake for nearly $6 billion in November 2025, despite having been an early NVIDIA backer, specifically to help fund its OpenAI investment — a notable strategic pivot from owning AI hardware suppliers toward concentrated bets on frontier AI labs themselves.
Market Intelligence
UnverifiedCredibly-reported claims — analyst notes, sourcing citing “people familiar with the matter,” deals where the companies involved declined to comment — that haven't been officially confirmed. Kept structurally separate from the sourced evidence above; treat as a lead worth researching further, not an established fact.
Reportedly weighing up to $100 billion France AI data center project
34% confidenceMasayoshi Son has held talks about a major AI data center buildout in France and floated investing as much as $100 billion in the country, though he may prioritize other projects and end up committing far less.
Reported by people familiar with the matter via Bloomberg/Japan Times; SoftBank has not made a binding public commitment at the $100 billion figure, and the company's confirmed France plan (roughly $87 billion for 3.1-5 GW by 2031, already reflected above) is a smaller, distinct figure from this reported larger ambition.
Japan Times · May 12, 2026
Reportedly in talks to invest $30 billion more in OpenAI
36% confidenceSoftBank is reportedly in discussions to invest as much as $30 billion more in OpenAI beyond its already-disclosed cumulative commitment, reflecting Son's ambition to remain the central financial backer of frontier AI development.
Based on a report citing unnamed sources; the additional $30 billion has not been confirmed as a signed or closed commitment by either SoftBank or OpenAI.
Japan Times · Jan 28, 2026
SoftBank Group's Timeline
A sourced, dated history of SoftBank Group's key moments — founding to present.
Jan 1981 · Founded
SoftBank was founded by Masayoshi Son, later becoming a major technology investment conglomerate.
2025–2026 · Sells NVIDIA stake to fund OpenAI investment
SoftBank sold its entire NVIDIA stake to help fund a cumulative OpenAI investment surpassing $60 billion for an approximately 13% stake, while chairing the $500 billion Stargate project.
Jul 2026 · Son forecasts $5 trillion annual AI investment by 2040
CEO Masayoshi Son forecast that annual global AI investment will reach $5 trillion by 2040 to fund data centers, chip production, and energy infrastructure, dismissing AI-bubble concerns as 'absurd' and predicting 100 trillion autonomous AI agents by 2040.
How These Connections Evolved
How a relationship changed over time, not just its current state — sourced, dated, and traceable.
SoftBank Group ↔ OpenAI
2025–2026
SoftBank's cumulative OpenAI investment surpassed $60 billion for an approximately 13% stake, positioning it as chair of the $500 billion Stargate infrastructure project alongside OpenAI and Oracle.
Now
SoftBank has cumulatively invested over $60 billion in OpenAI, accumulating an approximately 13% stake, and chairs the broader $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure project alongside OpenAI and Oracle.
SoftBank Group ↔ Arm Holdings
2025–2026
SoftBank deepened its AI-chip ambitions for its roughly 90%-owned Arm Holdings stake under 'Project Izanagi,' a dedicated internal AI chip design operation.
Now
SoftBank owns approximately 90% of Arm Holdings, which it considers central to its AI chip strategy under its 'Project Izanagi' dedicated AI chip operation.
SoftBank Group ↔ Masayoshi Son
2025–2026
Under Son's direction, SoftBank's cumulative OpenAI investment surpassed $60 billion and the company took on chairmanship of the $500 billion Stargate infrastructure project, deepening its pivot into AI, semiconductors, and data centers.
Now
Masayoshi Son founded and continues to lead SoftBank Group, directing its pivot toward artificial intelligence, semiconductors, data centers and AI infrastructure investment.