Softbank eyes record $25bn investment in OpenAI

Key topics.SoftBank may invest up to $25B in OpenAI, its biggest AI bet yet.Project Stargate plans to deploy $100B, scaling AI infrastructure.Rival AI startups, like DeepSeek, are intensifying competition..Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here..The seventh BizNews Conference, BNC#7, is to be held in Hermanus from March 11 to 13, 2025. The 2025 BizNews Conference is designed to provide an excellent opportunity for members of the BizNews community to interact directly with the keynote speakers, old (and new) friends from previous BNC events – and to interact with members of the BizNews team. Register for BNC#7 here..If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up for the BizNews channel here..By Rachel Metz___STEADY_PAYWALL___.SoftBank Group Corp. is in discussions to invest as much as $25 billion in OpenAI, a move that would potentially make it the AI startup's biggest backer..The Japanese investment company is in talks to put in between $15 billion and $25 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter. That would be in addition to the $15 billion that Masayoshi Son's SoftBank has committed to Project Stargate, the Texas-based joint venture with OpenAI to build data centers and other AI infrastructure to support the ChatGPT maker, the person said, asking not to be named discussing private talks..The plans are at an early stage and may not result in an investment, the person said. Representatives of SoftBank an OpenAI declined to comment..Son stood alongside OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman when US President Donald Trump announced the Stargate venture this month, and the two CEOs have been in contact for many years over their shared interest in advancing artificial intelligence development. Along with joint venture partners Oracle Corp. and Abu Dhabi-backed MGX, Stargate plans to deploy $100 billion initially and invest as much as $500 billion over four years..OpenAI's biggest investor Microsoft Corp. declined to comment. The Financial Times first reported the talks were in progress..OpenAI hungers for more data center capacity to make its AI more powerful. It's now facing a market crowded with rivals, emboldened by Chinese startup DeepSeek's apparent success at matching OpenAI's capabilities at a fraction of the cost. The US firm has so far relied on Microsoft for much of its cloud and computing needs. .Read more: 🔒 ASML orders beat estimates as AI investments drive demand.SoftBank has been in search of an opportune moment to enter the lucrative AI hardware market after years of uneven bets on AI startups via the Vision Fund. Son and OpenAI's Altman first met in 2019, when Son offered OpenAI $1 billion in investment, which never materialized. The two have since bonded over their shared concerns around the shortage of semiconductors needed to power AI applications, and the Vision Fund invested $500 million in the startup and launched a $1.5 billion tender to buy more stock from OpenAI employees last month..News of SoftBank's possible investment helped bolster a rise in Asian chip-related stocks including Advantest Corp. SoftBank's shares were down 1% Thursday morning in Tokyo.."It makes sense that Nasdaq and semiconductor-related stocks are being bought, but SoftBank, which is putting up the money, isn't going to see the same buying momentum," said Takehiko Masuzawa, head of equity trading at Phillip Securities Japan..Tech industry players including Elon Musk have questioned the lack of details around Stargate and its financing. The xAI founder expressed doubt whether companies that joined Trump's announcement could follow through on their financial commitments. SoftBank had roughly $25 billion in cash and cash equivalents at the end of September as well as holdings in hundreds of startups and a 90% stake in chip designer Arm Holdings Plc that it could tap to finance the bet. .But skepticism persists about whether Stargate actually amounts to a dramatic increase from previously announced data center buildout plans. Son visited Mar-a-Lago just last month to announce that SoftBank would spend $100 billion in the US over the coming presidential term, and Project Stargate draws from that effort, according to a person familiar with the matter..Read also:.🔒 Google boosts AI rivalry with $1 billion investment in AnthropicSam Altman returns as CEO after OpenAI's roller-coaster rideSoftBank alumnus replaces Van Dijk (51) today as Naspers/Prosus CEO leaves "by mutual agreement".© 2025 Bloomberg L.P.

Softbank eyes record $25bn investment in OpenAI

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