SoftBank’ Son strikes $3B AI joint venture deal with OpenAI in Japan, eyes $25B investment
Nickie Louise
Posted On February 3, 2025
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son is partnering with OpenAI’s Sam Altman to launch a joint venture in Japan. Announced Monday, the initiative, named SB OpenAI Japan, will offer AI services to corporate clients. This follows last week’s reports that SoftBank was in discussions to invest up to $25 billion into OpenAI.
According to a recent report from Reuters, SB OpenAI Japan will be co-owned by OpenAI and a newly established company under SoftBank and its telecom unit. On top of that, SoftBank has agreed to pay $3 billion annually to integrate OpenAI’s technology across its various businesses.
“CEO Masayoshi Son on Monday said he has agreed with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman to set up a joint venture in Japan to offer artificial intelligence services to corporate customers. The joint venture, SB OpenAI Japan, will be owned by OpenAI and a company established by SoftBank and its domestic telecoms arm,” Reuters reported.
Son isn’t stopping there. SoftBank is also putting up $15 billion for Stargate, a U.S.-based AI project in partnership with OpenAI and Oracle. The initiative, unveiled last month, brought Son back into the spotlight alongside former President Donald Trump.
Meanwhile, competition in AI is heating up. China’s DeepSeek has investors questioning whether pouring billions into AI is a smart bet, as its model appears to match what leading U.S. firms have developed.
“The world is going to just need so much compute,” Altman said.
For Son, this partnership signals a return to aggressive investing after a period of caution brought on by a downturn in SoftBank’s tech holdings and a series of high-profile missteps. He has a track record of forging partnerships with U.S. tech firms, including a deal that brought the iPhone to Japan in 2008.
On Monday, Son and Altman also met with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, underscoring the venture’s significance.
In a separate development, Altman told reporters in Japan that OpenAI is working on a dedicated AI device aimed at replacing smartphones. Speaking with Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun, he hinted at a potential collaboration with Jony Ive, the former Apple design chief, to bring the concept to life.
