Sales rise nearly 11% as SoftBank plans more AI investments
SoftBank Group’s profit fell from 421.8 billion yen a year earlier to 347.3 billion yen in the April-June period. The drop came as higher costs offset investment gains.
The company’s quarterly sales rose nearly 11% to 2 trillion yen. SoftBank invests in artificial intelligence, energy and robotics, areas that can produce large gains but also expose the company to significant investment risks.
Chief Financial Officer Yoshimitsu Goto told reporters that SoftBank’s business with Arm was doing well. Arm is a British semiconductor and software design company.
Goto also said SoftBank had invested an additional $20 billion in OpenAI and planned to make more investments during the current fiscal year.
SoftBank’s investment activity runs through its Vision Fund, which places substantial bets on fledgling technology companies. Those investments can lead to large gains, while also contributing to swings in the company’s results.
SoftBank Group is based in Tokyo and has invested aggressively in artificial intelligence, energy and robotics. Its latest results show the financial impact of maintaining that investment strategy as it expands its commitments to AI.