SoftBank increases capital in OpenAI, paving the way for the AI giant's IPO plan

Japanese investment group SoftBank has just approved a second disbursement worth $22.5 billion, completing a $30 billion investment package in US artificial intelligence company OpenAI.

According to technology news site The Information, SoftBank's Board of Directors approved this investment on the condition that OpenAI completes the corporate restructuring process, creating the premise for the possibility of an initial public offering (IPO) in the near future.

The new capital will help the globally renowned artificial intelligence startup complete a $41 billion fundraising round announced in April 2025.

Also this month, SoftBank pledged to invest $10 billion in OpenAI and plans to add another $30 billion by December 2025, provided the AI company transitions to a for-profit model before the end of 2025.

However, SoftBank also said that if the restructuring plan is not completed on schedule, the total investment value will drop to $20 billion.

SoftBank's massive investment continues to demonstrate the group's long-term ambitions in the field of artificial intelligence (AI), which is considered a pillar in SoftBank's global technology investment strategy led by billionaire Masayoshi Son.

If the deal is completed, this will be one of the largest private investments ever in the AI field, and will bring a significant boost to OpenAI in the context of the increasingly fierce race for capital and technology among global AI corporations.

OpenAI, the company that developed the ChatGPT model, recently surpassed billionaire Elon Musk's SpaceX to become the world's most valuable startup, with a valuation of $500 billion — significantly higher than the $300 billion SoftBank-led funding round earlier this year.

The company is said to be in the process of finalizing a deal to raise new capital worth $6.6 billion from a group of investors including Thrive Capital, SoftBank Group Corp., Dragoneer Investment Group, MGX (Abu Dhabi) and T. Rowe Price.

Founded in 2015 as a non-profit organization, OpenAI was founded with the mission of developing AI for the benefit of humanity. However, after partnering with Microsoft in 2019, the company shifted strongly to commercialization and quickly became one of the world's leading AI technology development centers./.

(TTXVN/Vietnam+)

Source: https://www.vietnamplus.vn/softbank-tang-von-vao-openai-mo-duong-cho-ke-hoach-ipo-cua-ong-lon-ai-post1072772.vnp