SoftBank's $40 billion investment in OpenAI has once again drawn attention to Japan's largest AI investment ambitions. The key to this deal is the $22.5 billion cash injection it made into OpenAI last week, the largest single investment in the company's history. SoftBank previously paid $7.5 billion upfront last month, and the remaining $17.5 billion was raised by a consortium of investors in April.
The funds will be used to fund OpenAI's "Starlink Data Center" project, which will provide 10 GW of computing capacity in the United States. The project is targeted for completion by 2029, and Oracle (ORCL) and SoftBank's renewable energy subsidiary SB Energy are collaborating on the project.
A prerequisite for this investment was OpenAI's organizational restructuring. OpenAI restructured its for-profit structure under the nonprofit umbrella, converting its for-profit division into an independent public benefit corporation. With this change complete, SoftBank was able to make a large cash injection.
According to a Nikkei Asia report, this gives SoftBank a roughly 11% stake in OpenAI, making it the company's second-largest shareholder after Microsoft (MSFT) with a 27.5% stake. Microsoft previously held a 32% stake, but the restructuring reportedly resulted in some of its stake being diluted.
To finance this round of financing, SoftBank reportedly liquidated some of its portfolio assets. It sold $5.8 billion worth of Nvidia (NVDA) shares and $4.8 billion worth of T-Mobile (TMUS) stock, and also secured a $11.5 billion loan secured by its stake in Arm Holdings.
OpenAI's corporate value has also risen significantly. As recently as March, when SoftBank invested, OpenAI's valuation was $300 billion (approximately KRW 432 trillion). However, following a recent secondary market sale of $6.6 billion (approximately KRW 9.5 trillion), its value has risen to $500 billion (approximately KRW 720 trillion). According to the Wall Street Journal, OpenAI is currently negotiating new funding at a valuation of up to $830 billion (approximately KRW 1,195 trillion).
Additionally, OpenAI is reportedly considering an initial public offering (IPO) in 2027, which could potentially raise at least $60 billion (approximately KRW 86.4 trillion) worth of shares. The expected corporate value could reach as high as $1 trillion (approximately KRW 1,440 trillion), offering SoftBank an opportunity to realize substantial valuation gains.
In addition, SoftBank continues its aggressive portfolio expansion across the AI sector. It recently agreed to acquire the tech-focused private equity fund DigitalBridge for $4.04 billion (approximately KRW 58.2 trillion). Vantage Data Center, part of the company's portfolio, is collaborating with OpenAI to build its Stargate computing campus in Wisconsin. This is interpreted as SoftBank's move to vertically integrate the AI ecosystem, even into the physical infrastructure sector.
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