SoftBank is planning to buy $1.5 billion worth of OpenAI stock as its CEO Masayoshi Son looks to position the Japanese group as an artificial intelligence (AI) leader.

Son is doing this with an ambitious AI plan of putting his company at the centre of developments in AI, according to a Financial Times report. “This is what I was born to do, to realise ASI [artificial super intelligence],” Son had said before.

Also Read: Coca-Cola’s AI-generated Christmas ad receives backlash, company responds

Son has also publicly expressed admiration for OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman and said he frequently talks to him.

The group will buy the shares through a tender offer which is a mechanism allowing current as well as former OpenAI employees who have held their stock for more than two years to sell it to them.

The deal may close early next year, according to the report.

The stocks will be priced as per OpenAI’s last funding round, completed last month wherein the $6.6 billion fundraise valued it at $150 billion.

SoftBank had itself invested $500 million in that round through Second Vision Fund, its tech-heavy investment vehicle.

Also Read: Anand Mahindra posts electric SUV video: ‘Don’t try without supervision’

SoftBank’s extra investment would make it one of OpenAI’s largest backers along with Josh Kushner’s Thrive Capital, Tiger Global, Altimeter Capital, Coatue Management and Abu Dhabi-based tech investment firm MGX.

However, OpenAI’s most important partner is Microsoft which has invested more than $13 billion into it.

This comes at a time when AI start-up are raising tens of billions in debt and equity this year. For instance, Elon Musk is expected to close a $5 billion funding round for his AI start-up xAI this week, valuing it at $45 billion, and rival Anthropic received a second $4 billion investment from Amazon last week.

Also Read: Honda enters EV two-wheeler segment, launches Activa e, QC1 | Details

Stay updated with the…

See more