SoftBank shares climbed 19.8% in Tokyo on Thursday, reversing five straight losses and adding about $35 billion in market value.
Nvidia's overnight results drove the move: revenue surged 85% to $81.62 billion, reinforcing demand for AI infrastructure tied to SoftBank holdings including Arm and OpenAI.
OpenAI listing optimism added to the rally, with analysts saying SoftBank's heavy exposure to AI assets amplified the market reaction even though much of the news had been anticipated.
Arm rose more than 15% in U.S. trading, while SoftBank said gains tied to OpenAI reached about $45 billion in the year ended March and helped power a $46 billion annual Vision Fund gain.
The surge spread across Asia's Nvidia-linked supply chain, lifting SK Hynix more than 8%, Renesas over 7%, Samsung 6.7% and TSMC above 2%.
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SoftBank’s $64.6B OpenAI Gamble: AI Boom, IPO Frenzy, and the Bubble Debate
Overview
SoftBank Group achieved a major financial turnaround, posting a 5 trillion yen net profit driven by strong results from its Vision Fund and telecom division. A key factor was SoftBank’s strategic investment in OpenAI, whose valuation soared from $157 billion to $852 billion as its AI technologies rapidly expanded and impacted the market. SoftBank committed to increasing its investment in OpenAI to $64.6 billion by year-end, with CFO Yoshimitsu Goto expressing optimism about OpenAI’s continued growth. This bold move highlights SoftBank’s confidence in AI and its central role in the company’s recent success.