Japanese financial conglomerate SoftBank Group intends to increase its stake in OpenAI, creator of ChatGPT, through the acquisition of shares from the startup’s employees – and is willing to offer billions of dollars.
According to the Bloombergciting people familiar with the matter, the company would like to acquire up to US$1.5 billion (R$8.75 billion) in shares. According to the ReutersOpenAI has already released the transaction.
SoftBank contributed $500 million to OpenAI’s $6.6 billion round in October, but had pushed for a larger allocation at the time, one of the sources told Bloombergasking not to be identified because the negotiations are not public.
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SoftBank’s chief executive, billionaire Masayoshi Son, has been persistent in seeking a larger stake in OpenAI after investing in the company in the latest round of financing, according to the CNBC.
The Microsoft-backed artificial intelligence startup raised US$500 million from the Japanese conglomerate, according to international press, in a US$6.6 billion funding round held in October, when it was valued at US$157 billion .
OpenAI employees will have until December 24 to decide whether they want to participate in the new round of funding, a source told Reutersadding that the share offering price is in line with the company’s latest round of financing. The investment will come from SoftBank’s Vision Fund 2, another source told the news outlet.
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Focus on AI
SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son has vowed to increase investment in artificial intelligence as his Tokyo-based company recovers its financial position after years of missteps.
In addition to his stake in OpenAI, Son has been striving to expand his conglomerate’s exposure to the AI wave with acquisitions like that of chip startup Graphcore.
Recently, the executive said he was saving resources “so I can take the next big step”, but did not provide any details about his investment plans.
