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The origins of SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son's big bet on AI

CNBC · 7 days ago
CNBC
CNBC
7 days ago

Masayoshi Son has sought to put his firm SoftBank at the center of the artificial intelligence revolution. While he has made big investments recently, his thinking on the subject spans back 15 years. CNBC's Arjun Kharpal unpacks the story.

Breakdown
  • Masayoshi Son's vision for AI at SoftBank dates back over a decade, with a focus on building an ecosystem spanning chips, infrastructure, and applications. 15s
  • Key milestones include the acquisition of ARM and major investments in companies like OpenAI and Aldebaran. 1m 10s
  • Son is known for paying high valuations when he has strong conviction in a company's future potential. 2m 13s
  • SoftBank's AI investments are high-risk, with the expectation that some will become category leaders, similar to the company's successful Alibaba investment. 3m 25s
  • The strategy involves creating a broad AI ecosystem, including infrastructure, chip companies, and application startups. 4m 12s
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