TOKYO (AP) – On February 3, 2025, Japanese technology giant SoftBank Group officially expanded its partnership with OpenAI by establishing a new company called SB OpenAI Japan, which is equally owned by both entities. This venture is aimed at advancing artificial intelligence capabilities in Japan and beyond, as both companies seek to harness the potential of AI technology for various business applications.
At the announcement event held in Tokyo, SoftBank's Chief Executive Masayoshi Son and OpenAI's Chief Executive Sam Altman expressed their enthusiasm for the collaboration. They encouraged Japanese companies to participate in this initiative, which is expected to enhance their operations through innovative AI solutions. Son, notably, showcased a shiny blue crystal ball as a symbolic representation of their AI service called Cristal, which is designed to assist companies in several key areas, including planning, marketing, email communications, and the analysis of legacy source codes.
Initially, Cristal will be implemented within SoftBank’s subsidiaries, such as Arm—a prominent semiconductor and software company—and PayPay, a digital payment service. The company has committed to investing approximately $3 billion annually to integrate Cristal across its various businesses, underlining SoftBank's confidence in the transformative power of AI technology.
During the event, Masayoshi Son conveyed his excitement, stating, “This will be super-intelligence for the company. I’m so excited.” This statement highlights the ambitious goals set by SoftBank as it seeks to leverage AI to revolutionize its business practices.
Additionally, Sam Altman introduced a recently announced feature referred to as “deep research,” which allows ChatGPT to perform complex tasks such as compiling reports by accessing and analyzing thousands of online sources more rapidly than a human could. Altman noted that this capability would be available in Japan and would be tailored to the Japanese language, thereby making advanced AI tools more accessible to local enterprises.
Altman emphasized the significance of the partnership, stating, “This partnership with SoftBank will accelerate our vision for bringing transformative AI to some of the world’s most influential companies, starting with Japan.” This statement reflects the strategic intent behind the collaboration, prioritizing Japan as a key market for AI development and deployment.
Furthermore, the partnership is part of a broader initiative known as the Stargate project, which SoftBank, OpenAI, and Oracle are involved in—an initiative that is supported by former President Donald Trump and seeks to invest up to $500 billion in artificial intelligence infrastructure in the United States. Son also revealed that Stargate plans to expand its operations into Japan and other countries, indicating a global ambition for their AI infrastructure projects.
In the wake of these developments, the technology sector is witnessing heightened competition, particularly following the announcement from a Chinese newcomer named DeepSeek, which has reportedly introduced a low-cost yet highly intelligent AI technology. This competitive landscape underscores the urgency and significance of the strides being made by SoftBank and OpenAI in the realm of artificial intelligence.
As this partnership evolves, industry leaders and companies are closely following the integration of AI technologies driven by SoftBank and OpenAI, with expectations of reshaping business strategies through advanced AI solutions in various sectors both within Japan and internationally.
