SoftBank and OpenAI Form a Strategic Partnership to Revolutionize AI Technology in Japan

OpenAI, a global leader in artificial intelligence technology, has announced the commitment of Japan's largest multinational conglomerate, SoftBank Group, in a landmark announcement on February 3, 2025. In return for the substantial $3 billion annually, it would invest in SoftBank's and all its subsidiaries' advanced AI solutions. In addition to this financial commitment, SoftBank also unveiled a new joint venture, “SB OpenAI Japan,” which will be tasked with marketing OpenAI’s enterprise AI products to major companies across Japan.

This move is likely to have significant implications for the AI industry, marking the latest chapter in the growing influence of SoftBank in the world of AI, as well as the strategic alliances that are shaping the competitive landscape of the technology. The partnership comes on the heels of SoftBank’s planned contribution to OpenAI’s upcoming funding round, potentially raising up to $40 billion in the form of an investment to further propel the development of OpenAI’s groundbreaking technologies.

The Strategic Partnership

The partnership between SoftBank and OpenAI will see SoftBank's subsidiaries gaining access to a range of OpenAI’s advanced tools, including the widely recognized ChatGPT Enterprise, OpenAI’s API, and custom models that can be tailored to meet the specific needs of businesses. SoftBank will also gain access to some of OpenAI’s newest agent products, including the “Operator,” an AI tool designed to perform web-based tasks, such as planning vacations or filling out forms. Furthermore, the partnership will provide SoftBank with OpenAI’s soon-to-be-released feature, “Deep Research,” which promises to revolutionize data analysis by conducting multistep research across the web.

It isn't just about cutting-edge technology. SoftBank's British chip design subsidiary, Arm, which SoftBank purchased in 2016, will also benefit from this strategic partnership. The tools that OpenAI would offer to Arm would even help the latter boost its internal productivity and innovation capabilities and accelerate its development and market competitiveness in the chip industry.

The joint venture, SB OpenAI Japan, will focus particularly on deploying those tools across the major corporate sector in Japan. SoftBank intends to bring AI-driven productivity into one of the world's biggest and most competitive economies by offering these AI solutions to large enterprises in Japan. This could remake the corporate landscape of Japan as AI is injected into sectors like manufacturing, finance, retail, and healthcare.

Masayoshi Son's Vision for AGI

At a livestreamed event marking the partnership, SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son expressed his vision for the future of AI. Son emphasized that he believes artificial general intelligence (AGI)—a form of AI that can perform any intellectual task a human can—is not a distant fantasy but a reality that will materialize in less than 10 years. He said the achievement of AGI will likely occur first in large enterprises, that own enough financial muscles to fund such massive investments required to bring this technology to a productive reality.

In his statement, Son explained that the deal with OpenAI would be important for realizing his vision of achieving AGI. He also underscored the necessity of large capital injections from the corporate world to achieve AGI, since realizing it would be a highly costly affair in terms of technology and infrastructure, an investment which could only be made by large corporates at the moment.

Funding OpenAI by SoftBank

The announcement comes amid reports that OpenAI is in talks to raise up to $40 billion in a new funding round, with SoftBank positioned as a key investor. SoftBank’s investment could range between $15 billion and $25 billion, further solidifying its role as OpenAI’s top backer. If the funding round goes through, SoftBank would surpass even Microsoft in terms of the financial backing it has provided to OpenAI, positioning the Japanese conglomerate as one of the most influential players in the AI space.

This funding is expected to be used for various initiatives, including OpenAI’s commitment to Stargate, a joint venture between SoftBank, OpenAI, and Oracle. Stargate is poised to contribute billions of dollars to advancing AI infrastructure in the U.S., further strengthening the technological landscape for generative AI.

The Growing AI Competition

While SoftBank and OpenAI are preparing to expand their global footprint, the competition in the AI space continues to heat up. Companies such as Elon Musk's xAI, and tech giants like Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and Anthropic, are all fighting for a slice of the rapidly emerging AI market. Even DeepSeek, an unheard-of Chinese startup lab, has been catapulted into the American scene based on its ability to engineer a powerful AI model at a fraction of the price of its American counterparts.

DeepSeek has shown how AI technology can mushroom, reminding us all of how the AI business remains a very competitive field of developing more efficient and powerful models of AI. As such, the CEO of OpenAI recently reminded the public about the significance of DeepSeek, calling for the democratization of AI in general, allowing for solutions accessible to everyone.

With such competition growing against it, SoftBank and OpenAI will have a challenge in front of them; however, they are perfectly well-equipped to be the vanguard of innovation through substantial financial resources and access to the best that OpenAI can offer.

The Future of AI and the Role of SoftBank. With SoftBank further investing heavily into the technologies of OpenAI, the company stands to gain from bringing deep AI tools to global enterprise level, particularly in Japan, where SB OpenAI Japan will be focused. The rapid development of new AI products and features may make this collaboration between SoftBank and OpenAI a new beginning in enterprise productivity and innovation.

In positioning itself as one of the foremost players in the AI space, SoftBank not only is securing itself in the future of technology but also sets the pace for AGI development. Whether it will succeed in getting AGI in the following decade only time will tell, but with its deep financial commitment coupled with its strategic partnerships, SoftBank is certainly one of the more bold steps being taken toward realizing an ambitious vision.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is the scope of the alliance between SoftBank and OpenAI?

The agreement revolves around the investment of SoftBank with an annual amount of $3 billion in the operation and subsidiaries as a whole. This is toward integrating the world-class AI instruments and technology in the companies and also set up a joint venture called SB OpenAI Japan which will only offer enterprise tech exclusively from OpenAI to the corporate companies in Japan.

What specific OpenAI tools will SoftBank have access to?

SoftBank will gain access to a suite of OpenAI’s technologies, including ChatGPT Enterprise, OpenAI’s API, custom models, and advanced agent products like “Operator,” which performs web-based tasks. Additionally, SoftBank will use OpenAI’s upcoming “Deep Research” tool, designed for multistep web-based data analysis.

What is Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), and why is it important to SoftBank’s vision?

AGI is the form of AI that can learn and apply knowledge to a wide variety of tasks while surpassing human intellectual abilities in some domains. According to SoftBank's CEO, Masayoshi Son, AGI will be developed in the near future, which will be the decade, as the large corporations with the capital for investment will take the lead.

How much is SoftBank planning to invest in OpenAI’s upcoming funding round?

SoftBank is expected to contribute between $15 billion and $25 billion to OpenAI’s funding round, helping the company raise up to $40 billion. This investment would make SoftBank OpenAI’s top financial backer, surpassing Microsoft in terms of funding.

How does SoftBank’s acquisition of Arm fit into the partnership with OpenAI?

The company also includes Arm, the British chip design subsidiary of SoftBank. Using OpenAI tools, Arm aims to improve the productivity across the company, helping enhance innovation as well as operational efficiency in the competitive chip industry.