SoftBank’s Billion-Dollar Gambit: CEO Declares War on Human Intelligence With 2035 Artificial Super Intelligence Deadline

Masayoshi Son just put Silicon Valley on notice—SoftBank's throwing its $100B Vision Fund at what he calls 'the last invention humanity needs.'

Brace for impact: The man who bet early on Alibaba now wants artificial superintelligence (ASI) running global infrastructure by 2035. No pressure, engineers.

Why this changes everything:

1. The ASI moonshot: Forget chatbots—Son wants machines that outthink Nobel laureates by a factor of 100. The same guy who lost $32B on WeWork now promises 'superintelligence or bust.'

2. The 2035 timeline: Coincidentally, the year most pension funds investing in SoftBank will need bailouts. Perfect timing for machines to take over asset management.

3. The unspoken play: This isn't about 'benefiting humanity'—it's about controlling the OS layer of the 22nd century economy. The real question? Whether SoftBank's balance sheet can survive another decade of Son's 'visionary' bets.

One thing's certain: Wall Street's quant funds are already sweating. When the guy who missed crypto bets the farm on machines smarter than Einstein, even Goldman Sachs might need an AI risk assessment.

TLDRs:

• SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son announced plans to lead in artificial super intelligence by 2035, aiming for technology 10,000 times smarter than humans.
• The company has already invested $32 billion in OpenAI and acquired chipmaker Ampere to build the infrastructure for next-generation AI.
• Son believes the AI race will follow a winner-takes-all pattern, placing SoftBank in direct competition with Microsoft, Google, and Amazon.
• This marks a return to Son’s bold investment strategy, echoing SoftBank’s historic bets on Yahoo, Alibaba, and its Vision Fund.

SoftBank Group founder and CEO Masayoshi Son has unveiled an ambitious roadmap for the next phase of artificial intelligence, outlining plans to transform the company into a global platform leader for what he calls “artificial super intelligence” (ASI) by 2035.

Speaking at SoftBank’s annual shareholder meeting Friday, Son described ASI as technology that surpasses human intelligence by a factor of 10,000 and likened the emerging battle for dominance in this space to previous tech platform wars, where only a few players ultimately win big.

“We want to become the organiser of the industry in the artificial super intelligence era,” Son told shareholders.

Son’s declaration positions SoftBank as a direct challenger to dominant players like Microsoft, Amazon, and Google. He emphasized that the AI race will be governed by a winner-takes-all logic, where the leading platform could gain unmatched influence over global technology infrastructure.

The company’s strategic shift is backed by a staggering investment portfolio, including a $6.5 billion acquisition of US-based semiconductor firm Ampere and a commitment of up to $40 billion in OpenAI, the firm behind ChatGPT.

SoftBank’s Mega Bet on ASI

SoftBank’s move toward artificial super intelligence reflects a dramatic escalation of its AI ambitions. Son’s $32 billion investment in OpenAI since 2024 is not just a show of confidence in the startup, it is a signal that SoftBank is seeking to shape the future of intelligence itself. The scope of ASI far exceeds today’s generative AI systems, targeting capabilities that would RENDER human-level intelligence a mere stepping stone.

While the timeline for superintelligent systems remains uncertain, the stakes are already sky-high. Industry leaders speculate that the advent of artificial general intelligence could arrive within the next few years. By taking an aggressive funding stance, SoftBank aims to be the force behind a future where machines may think and innovate exponentially faster than humans.

A Familiar Pattern of Risk, Reward, and Disruption

Son’s announcement echoes previous chapters in SoftBank’s history. From its early Yahoo and Alibaba investments to the launch of its $100 billion Vision Fund in 2017, the company has often pursued transformative technologies with bold, high-stakes bets.

Although that approach has led to dramatic wins, such as turning a $20 million investment in Alibaba into over $100 billion, it has also exposed SoftBank to volatility, as seen in the fallout from WeWork and other overvalued startups.

Still, Son remains undeterred. He acknowledged regret for not entering the AI boom earlier, particularly having sold SoftBank’s stake in Nvidia prior to the company’s meteoric rise. His renewed focus on ASI appears to be a course correction intended to place SoftBank back at the forefront of tech innovation.

Building the Infrastructure for an Intelligent Future

To realize this vision, SoftBank is laying the groundwork through a combination of hardware, infrastructure, and capital. Its acquisition of Ampere strengthens its foothold in semiconductor design, complementing its ownership of Arm Holdings. These assets FORM part of a broader AI ecosystem strategy, one that aims to support data processing at the scale required for superintelligent systems.

Son has long spoken of a future powered by trillions of connected devices, with ASI serving as the cognitive engine behind that vision. By 2035, SoftBank hopes to be not just a participant in this future, but the organizing force behind it.