NearFor a decade, SoftBank Group's main business was the mobile operator business with millions of subscribers, and it was particularly interested in Apple's iPhone. But as the investment group moves toward a future befitting of its leaders** – where AI will transform business, culture, infrastructure and the environment – SoftBank will once again rely on its telecommunications business.
Son's investments — which cover more than 1,700 companies in conservative statistics — have led to legendary successes like Alibaba Group Holdings*** and Yahoo Japan, but also include the likes of WeWork IncOr a loser like Zume Pizzeria Ventures, both of which made their money through his $100. Billion Vision**.
SoftBank is the only strong supporter. The wireless network, which operates in a country that has been the world's most expensive telecommunications for years, generates regular cash flow that eases bankers' concerns and helps Son secure loans at negligible interest rates.
The parent company is the telecommunications company's largest shareholder and is run by two of Mr. Son's most loyal longtime deputies: Ken Miyauchi, the chairman, and Junichi Miyagawa, the president.
If Masayoshi Son had been here, he would have expressed it better than I did," Miyauchi and Miyagawa often say when introducing artificial intelligence and technology.
Their company is now amassing more AI power, shifting its focus to align with Son's ambitions and Japan's efforts to create its own AI ecosystem. When junior SoftBank reports tomorrow, attention will be focused on how and when AI will drive revenue.
This is partly due to its parent company, which owns NVIDIA CorpOwnership of chip architecture partner Arm Holdings PLC, the telecommunications division that acquired the coveted GH200 Grace Hopper chip early on**. NVIDIA fuses its semiconductor design with ARM technology, calling it a superchip.
Acquiring these chips is a major move for SoftBank, which lags behind NTT Docomo Inc. domesticallyand KDDI Corp. With such prowess, Son's mobile operators are now racing to be the first to develop a foundational AI model for Japan.
This lead has also earned public funding for airlines. SoftBank received a subsidy of 5.3 billion yen (about $36 million) this year to help it train its AI models, and in addition, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry will build a new data center for SoftBank to plan in Tomakomai City, Hokkaido. The center's initial cost of 65 billion yen covers nearly half of the cost.
The company says the 70-hectare site's capacity will eventually be expanded by more than six times thanks to local renewable energy support. Construction has also begun on a nearby chip foundry, which will be run by homegrown startup Rapidus Corpoperations, the telecommunications division has invested in the company.
These examples illustrate how Son's investment activities and tendencies continue to impact the telecommunications company's business. At the height of the vision, Son brought startup founders from WeWork's Adam Neumann to Didi Chuxing President Liu Qing to SoftBank World's annual event to introduce their businesses to corporate clients.
Last fall, Didi celebrated its fifth year of operating a taxi service in Osaka, thanks in part to a joint venture with SoftBank**. For WeWork, SoftBank's telecommunications division is taking over its operations in Japan, which went bankrupt under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, causing Son's empire to lose billions of dollars.
Around the world, startups are quietly going out of business, while others are struggling to raise cash. Son's risky approach to investing has led to the volatility they have all experienced.
But in Japan, the mobile business, which stemmed from the meeting between Mr. Son and Steve Jobs, is still booming. Years later, it's still the quiet center of tech investment groups, leaving behind real-world businesses long after the ups and downs of paper earnings have disappeared from the news.
Masayoshi Son