SoftBank weighs Gravis deal
SoftBank is reportedly considering a deal for Swiss robotics startup Gravis.
SoftBankSoftBank is reportedly weighing a deal for Swiss robotics startup Gravis
Gravis Robotics, an ETH Zurich spinout, fits autonomy kits to excavators. A tie-up would extend Masayoshi Son’s robotics buying spree from the factory floor to the building site. SoftBank is weighing a deal for Gravis Robotics, a Swiss startup that fits excavators and diggers with the sensors and software to run themselves, according to Bloomberg. The […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Weighs Deal for Robotics Startup Gravis
SoftBank Group Corp. is considering an acquisition of Gravis Robotics AG, people familiar with the matter said, as the Japanese investor targets the artificial intelligence technologies underpinning robotics.
Noetra’s CEO calls his robot AI startup a ‘last chance’ for Japan
Hironobu Tamba spent years inside SoftBank building large language models, the kind of software that answers questions and drafts emails. He has now walked away from that work to bet on machines that move. Tamba is president and chief executive of Noetra, a Tokyo company that began full-scale research in July on a home-grown foundation […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank lines up a new $60bn bond to keep its OpenAI bet funded
Sixty billion dollars is a lot of bond, even by SoftBank Group’s standards. The Japanese conglomerate is reportedly preparing to raise up to that much in fresh debt, according to Bloomberg, a target that would eclipse anything Masayoshi Son’s firm has sold before and that lands squarely behind its swelling bet on OpenAI. The plan […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Plans New ¥60 Billion Bond After Retail, Overseas Deals
SoftBank Group Corp. plans to sell about ¥60 billion ($369 million) of notes to institutional investors in Japan this month after domestic retail and foreign-currency bond offerings earlier this year.
Hyundai to Buy SoftBank’s Boston Dynamics Stake in Robot Push
Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliates are moving to acquire SoftBank Group Corp.’s remaining stake in the automaker’s Boston Dynamics unit, as the Seoul-based company accelerates commercialization of its Atlas humanoid robot.
Masayoshi Son says AI will cost $5tn a year by 2040, and calls bubble talk absurd
“Every year $5 trillion, or 800 trillion yen, you might think that’s a lie, but I am confident that’s what it will cost.” That was Masayoshi Son on Tuesday, at SoftBank’s annual corporate conference in Tokyo, telling the room what building artificial intelligence will require each year by 2040. Yet, he did not say how he […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Billionaire: Nuclear Fusion as Key to AI Future
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son said that in the not-so-distant future, nuclear fusion technology will offer the most realistic solution for powering AI data centers’ ballooning needs. He speaks at an annual SoftBank World event in Tokyo. (Source: Bloomberg)
SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son Sees Fusion Power as Key to AI’s Future
SoftBank Group Corp. founder Masayoshi Son said that in the not-so-distant future, nuclear fusion technology will offer the most realistic solution for powering AI data centers’ ballooning needs.
SoftBank and PayPay said to be in talks to invest in Seven & i
Japan’s biggest payments app and its most famous convenience-store chain may be about to get closer. SoftBank and its payments arm PayPay are in talks to invest in Seven & i Holdings, the retailer behind 7-Eleven, according to Bloomberg, which reported the discussions on Friday. Neither the size nor the structure of any deal has […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Names Ex-Goldman Sachs Trader Agne to Lead Vision Fund Finances
SoftBank Group Corp. has picked former Goldman Sachs trader Mark Agne to oversee finance and technology at the Vision Fund, people familiar with the matter said.
SoftBank Plans AI Cloud Services in US to Tap Surging Demand
SoftBank Group Corp. and its telecom unit will start renting AI computing resources to US companies next fiscal year in a bid to capitalize on the company’s growing pipeline of data center projects.
SoftBank’s CEO isn’t the only one with questions about Elon Musk’s orbital data center hype
Not everyone is buying Elon Musk’s vision for orbital data centers.
SoftBank Shares Tumble After Report of OpenAI’s IPO Delay
SoftBank Group Corp.’s stock fell as much as 13% on concerns that OpenAI may hold off on an initial public offering until next year and delay returns for its Japanese backer.
SoftBank 2026 AGM [pdf]
Article URL: https://group.softbank/media/Project/sbg/sbg/pdf/ir/investors/shareholders/2026/shareholders-meeting_46_05_en.pdf Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48672506 Points: 27 # Comments: 7
SoftBank’s Son says calling AI a bubble is ‘an insult’
At SoftBank Group’s annual shareholders’ meeting in Tokyo on Wednesday, the founder and chief executive was asked, as he is asked at almost every public appearance now, whether the artificial intelligence boom that has driven his fortune to record highs is a bubble waiting to deflate. He treated the question itself as the problem. To […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank’s Masayoshi Son Scraps Plan to Retire in His Sixties
SoftBank Group Corp.’s Masayoshi Son said he plans to hold onto the top spot at the technology group he founded for another decade or more, shredding his long-held plan to hand over the reins in his sixties.
Masayoshi Son Dismisses Musk’s Orbital Data Centers Idea
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son predicted that the AI race will be clinched by computing resources on Earth as he said there’s little merit to building data centers in space, as championed by Elon Musk. Neil Campling reports on Bloomberg Television. (Source: Bloomberg)
Masayoshi Son Dismisses Musk’s Idea for Orbital Data Centers
SoftBank Group Corp. founder Masayoshi Son said there’s little merit to building data centers in space, as championed by Elon Musk, predicting that the AI race will be clinched by compute on Earth.
Hyundai Takes Full Control of Boston Dynamics As SoftBank Exits For $325 Million
Hyundai Motor Group is acquiring SoftBank's remaining 9.65% stake in Boston Dynamics for $325 million, "closing out SoftBank's last piece of Boston Dynamics and turning the Waltham, Massachusetts robotics company into a wholly owned Hyundai business," reports Startup Fortune. From the report: The price is $325 million for the remaining stake, according to the deal terms, and it follows the put option SoftBank retained when Hyundai bought control of Boston Dynamics in 2021. You should read that a
SoftBank Scales Back Latin America Tech Bets as Venture Capital Boom Fades
SoftBank Group Corp. is struggling to find startups in Latin America ready for major investments, underscoring how sharply the tech boom there has cooled since attracting record levels of venture capital only a few years ago.
Asian tech stocks surged after the Iran-US deal, and AI chipmakers gained the most
Asian technology stocks surged on Monday after the United States and Iran announced a peace agreement, with AI and semiconductor companies posting the largest gains. SoftBank rose 10 per cent, SK Hynix climbed 6.42 per cent, and Samsung Electronics gained 4.5 per cent. Japan’s Nikkei 225 topped 69,000 for the first time in history. The […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank briefly became Japan’s most valuable company. The last time that happened was February 2000.
SoftBank knocked Toyota off its perch as Japan’s most valuable company last week, after a stock rally inflated the conglomerate’s market capitalisation by more than $120 billion in six months. Three days later, Toyota reclaimed the top spot. The last time SoftBank held that position was February 2000, when the dot-com bubble was on the cusp of […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank’s PayPay pushes into insurance with a 70.2% T&D Life stake
The SoftBank-backed payments app is taking a 70.2% stake in T&D Financial Life, its most capital-intensive move yet from payments into full financial services. PayPay is buying its way into life insurance. The SoftBank-backed payments company has agreed to acquire a 70.2% stake in T&D Financial Life Insurance from T&D Holdings for roughly ¥134.3bn, about […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank’s PayPay to Buy T&D’s Life Insurer for $840 Million
SoftBank Group Corp.’s payments unit is buying the life insurance unit of T&D Holdings Inc. for ¥134.3 billion ($840 million) to broaden its offerings and better compete in Japan’s ballooning fintech market.
SoftBank in talks to back Agile Robotics in $800m round, reports say
SoftBank is reportedly in early talks to back an $800m Agile Robots round
SoftBank, it seems, is not done buying robots. The Japanese group is in early talks to back a new funding round of around $800m (€700m) for Agile Robots, the Munich startup that builds robot arms, warehouse machines, and humanoids, according to Bloomberg. SoftBank would contribute more than $300m of that total, people familiar with the […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank in Early Talks to Back $800 Million Agile Robots Round
German industrial robotics startup Agile Robots is in discussions to raise about $800 million in new funding from backers including SoftBank Group Corp., as investors seek out companies deploying artificial intelligence in real-world settings.
SoftBank helps drive record €93bn of foreign investments for ‘Choose France’
SoftBank offers €75 billion to help build Europe’s biggest data centre project
SoftBank's investment will start with 3.1GW of data center capacity by 2031, before expanding to a target of 5GW.
SoftBank overtakes Toyota as Japan’s most valuable company on the AI rally
SoftBank’s market cap topped Toyota’s on Monday for the first time in 23 years, lifted by its ~$65bn OpenAI stake and a Nikkei breaking 67,000 for the first time. SoftBank Group overtook Toyota Motor on Monday to become Japan’s most valuable listed company, the first time the auto giant has been dethroned from the top […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Set to Become Japan’s Most Valuable Company
SoftBank Group Corp. is set to overtake Toyota Motor Corp. as Japan’s most valuable company on Monday, marking a milestone for the global artificial intelligence boom and a dramatic reshuffling of the country’s corporate hierarchy.
SoftBank is investing €75 billion to build 5 gigawatts of AI data centres in France. It’s Son’s biggest European bet.
SoftBank plans to invest as much as €75 billion ($87 billion) to build 5 gigawatts of AI data centre capacity in France. It is the Japanese conglomerate’s biggest AI infrastructure commitment in Europe. CEO Masayoshi Son and President Emmanuel Macron are expected to formally announce the deal at the Choose France Summit this weekend. The […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank says it will invest up to €75 billion to build French data centers
The goal, the firm said, is to develop and operate up to 5 gigawatts of additional data center capacity.
SoftBank Plans Up to €75 Billion Investment in French AI Centers
SoftBank Group Corp. plans to invest as much as €75 billion ($87 billion) to build 5 gigawatts of artificial intelligence data center capacity in France, saying the country is poised to become a top European hub for AI infrastructure.
SoftBank hits a fresh record as Tokyo bets the OpenAI IPO is finally coming
The Nikkei broke 65,000 for the first time on Monday, and SoftBank, the listed proxy for both OpenAI and Arm, did much of the lifting. SoftBank Group shares hit a record high in Tokyo on Monday, carrying the Nikkei 225 above 65,000 for the first time and capping a fortnight in which the Japanese investment […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Shares Hit Record With Lift From OpenAI IPO Hopes
SoftBank Group Corp. shares climbed to a record high, spurred by hopes of big returns from the Japanese investor’s stakes in OpenAI and SB Energy Corp., should the two go public.
SoftBank Taps Retail Market Again With $1.6 Billion Yen Bond
SoftBank Group Corp. plans to raise ¥260 billion ($1.6 billion) through another sale of subordinated bonds aimed mainly at individual investors, about two months after a similar retail offering.
Nvidia Earnings in Focus; SpaceX Eyes Historic IPO | Bloomberg Tech 5/20/2026
Bloomberg’s Ed Ludlow breaks down what to expect from Nvidia's earnings report, as investors anxiously await for the world’s most valuable company to show whether it can continue delivering the explosive growth fueling the AI boom. Plus, SpaceX inches closer to launch with an imminent IPO filing. And, a deep dive into SoftBank's bet on OpenAI as insiders grow worried that Masayoshi Son is too tied to the AI giant. (Source: Bloomberg)
SoftBank Founder’s Starstruck Bet on OpenAI Raises Concern
SoftBank has committed more than $60 billion to OpenAI to date, with founder Masayoshi Son reportedly convinced Sam Altman is leading the most important technology shift of the century. But as rival Anthropic gains ground, questions are growing - even inside SoftBank - about whether the company may be too heavily tied to OpenAI's success. Bloomberg's Peter Elstrom joins Ed Ludlow on "Bloomberg Tech." (Source: Bloomberg)
SoftBank Insiders Worry About Masayoshi Son’s Bet on OpenAI
On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, why Masayoshi Son’s $60 billion investment in OpenAI is raising concerns inside SoftBank.
SoftBank Founder’s Starstruck Bet on OpenAI Raises Concern
With more than $60 billion committed, some SoftBank insiders are growing uneasy over Son’s devotion to Altman.
Arm, SoftBank Said to Have Tried to Buy Cerebras
Arm Holdings and SoftBank Group made an approach to acquire Cerebras Systems weeks before its expected initial public offering, which was rebuffed. Bailey Lipschultz has more on "Bloomberg Deals." (Source: Bloomberg)
Arm, SoftBank Tried to Buy Cerebras in 11th Hour
Arm Holdings Plc and majority owner SoftBank Group Corp. made an approach to acquire Cerebras Systems Inc., the AI computing firm, weeks before its expected initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter.
SoftBank Profit Jumps, Emboldens Masa Son to Bet More on OpenAI
SoftBank Group Corp. reported a surge in quarterly profit due to valuation gains on its OpenAI investment, boosting confidence at the Japanese company to bet even more on the ChatGPT maker.
SoftBank’s Son in Talks for Major Data Center Project in France
SoftBank Group Corp. founder Masayoshi Son has held talks about unveiling an ambitious French AI data center project with President Emmanuel Macron in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.
SoftBank to manufacture large-scale batteries for AI data centres at former Sharp plant
Target output is one gigawatt-hour a year. Partners are South Korea’s Cosmos Lab and DeltaX. Production opens for the fiscal year starting next April, with zinc-halide chemistry following in 2027. SoftBank Group’s mobile-services subsidiary will begin manufacturing large-scale battery cells at the Sakai, Osaka site that once belonged to Sharp, the company said on Sunday, […] This story continues at The Next Web
SoftBank Plans to Make Large-Scale Batteries for AI Data Centers
SoftBank Group Corp.’s mobile unit said it plans to begin large-scale battery cell manufacturing at its Sakai, Osaka plant to address growing power demand for AI services.
SoftBank Cuts Target for OpenAI Margin Loan by 40%
SoftBank is scaling back plans for a $10 billion margin loan backed by its OpenAI stake after creditors voiced some hesitation. Matthew Bloxham of Bloomberg Intelligence has more. (Source: Bloomberg)
SoftBank cuts OpenAI-backed margin loan target by 40% to $6bn
Lenders pushed back on valuing OpenAI shares as collateral. The downsize lands a fortnight after the $10bn ask first surfaced and is the clearest signal yet that even an $852bn primary round has not closed the gap between sticker and what banks will lend against. SoftBank Group has trimmed the size of a margin loan […] This story continues at The Next Web