SoftBank Group’s shares dropped up to 10% after it confirmed the sale of its entire $5.83 billion stake in U.S. chipmaker Nvidia, funding its massive $22.5 billion investment in ChatGPT creator OpenAI.
According to CNBC, the capital shift underscores SoftBank’s focus on artificial intelligence. The firm also sold part of its T-Mobile stake, raising another $9.17 billion.
CFO Yoshimitsu Goto said the move aims to “provide more investment opportunities while maintaining financial strength.”
SoftBank’s Vision Fund was an early Nvidia investor in 2017, before exiting in 2019. Analysts view the latest sale as a strategic repositioning rather than a bearish signal, highlighting SoftBank’s confidence in the AI ecosystem.
Beyond OpenAI, SoftBank remains deeply involved in hardware through its majority-owned chip designer Arm Holdings, whose technology powers mobile and AI processors globally.Regional chip stocks, including Advantest, Tokyo Electron, TSMC, and SK Hynix, also slipped following the news.
