SoftBank founder and Japan’s richest person, Masayoshi Son, is seeking up to $100 billion from Gulf investors to set up a new fund designed to buy out traditional businesses and overhaul their operations using artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics, a report has said. SoftBank is facing mounting market scrutiny over its $65 billion commitment to Sam Altman’s OpenAI, especially amid delays surrounding the artificial intelligence startup’s anticipated initial public offering (IPO), the Financial Times reported.Rather than backing early-stage tech ventures, the signature playbook of SoftBank’s earlier investment arms, this proposed vehicle relies on a buyout-focused framework: acquiring established, non-tech firms that have lagged behind in automation and using AI and physical robotics to boost their efficiency and corporate value.Son has reportedly engaged influential sovereign investors across the Middle East in recent weeks, including senior leadership in the United Arab Emirates, to gauge financial appetite for the strategy.The core premise focuses on taking controlling ownership in companies ripe for modernisation, deploying automated intelligence tools to upgrade how they operate, and capturing the valuation upside as a novel way to monetize enterprise AI.
What are the key elements of proposed structure
Key elements of the proposed structure include SoftBank’s specialised robotics and physical AI unit, Roze, which is expected to play a central operational role in transforming acquired targets. Son ultimately aims to float Roze on public exchanges at a high valuation.Neither the establishment of the fund nor its capital commitments are guaranteed. It also remains unclear whether the pool will exclusively fund business acquisitions or also underwrite development expenses inside Roze itself.Son has a proven track record of securing sovereign capital in the region. Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala were the anchor investors in the inaugural $100 billion Vision Fund in 2017.Since inception, Vision Fund 1 has generated roughly $29 billion in investment gains. Vision Fund 2, which houses the firm’s massive OpenAI position and relies primarily on SoftBank’s internal capital, logged $20.5 billion in cumulative gains as of June. Abu Dhabi has simultaneously expanded its independent AI reach through entities like MGX and G42.
Softbank’s exposure to OpenAI and debt load
OpenAI remains the centerpiece of SoftBank’s corporate portfolio. To fund its $65 billion position, the Japanese technology investment giant has leaned on internal cash, outside backing, and extensive credit lines partly secured against its equity holdings in semiconductor designer Arm.However, OpenAI has yet to transition into a highly profitable enterprise, meaning SoftBank’s underlying balance sheet is heavily exposed to the private valuation of Altman’s firm. Despite these portfolio concentrations, Son continues to pursue an aggressive AI expansion path.