Shuli Ren, Columnist

Masayoshi Son Is Going Big on OpenAI. Time to Worry.

SoftBank’s foray into generative AI brings back memories of WeWork.

September 14, 2025 at 8:00 PM UTC

Shuli Ren is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist covering Asian markets. A former investment banker, she was a markets reporter for Barron’s. She is a CFA charterholder.

SoftBank’s Son is betting big on OpenAI.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg

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When Masayoshi Son bets big, it either marks the dawn of an era, or the dusk of a tech cycle.

The chairman of SoftBank Group Corp. has enjoyed some spectacular wins. Spotting Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. early handed SoftBank $58 billion when the Chinese e-commerce firm went public a decade ago. A $32 billion take-private deal of ARM Holdings Plc in 2016, followed by a timely listing of the chip designer in 2023 when the AI theme took off, gave Son another windfall. ARM now accounts for roughly half of SoftBank’s portfolio value.