Concerns regarding a potential bubble in artificial intelligence investments are unfounded, declared SoftBank Group’s CEO Masayoshi Son on Tuesday, dismissing such skepticism as outdated and comparable to questioning the use of automobiles and aircraft.
“To question if AI is a bubble is a nonsensical query,” Son remarked to executives during an annual corporate gathering in Tokyo. “AI will radically alter our lives and will do so profitably.”
“Those who resist change are constricting their own horizons. Those who criticize AI are essentially aiming upwards,” Son continued.
Financial markets have recently been engulfed by concerns that the rapid increase in share prices of firms like Nvidia, along with substantial investments in data centers, may not deliver the expected returns aligned with predictions for significant AI profits.
Son established SoftBank over 40 years ago and is recognized as a trailblazer in Japan’s tech investments. He was among the early advocates for AI and has allocated tens of billions of dollars to associated enterprises.
He estimates that approximately $5 trillion in worldwide investments will be essential each year to enhance data centers, boost chip production, and create energy systems and other infrastructures required for AI.
“By 2040, around 20% of the global GDP will be accounted for by AI-related sectors, representing the era of superintelligence,” he stated.
SoftBank manages an extensive portfolio of companies through its Vision Funds. Its other ventures encompass telecommunications and energy.
SoftBank Group Corp., based in Tokyo, recently reported that its profits for the fiscal year ending in March surged nearly fivefold to 5 trillion yen ($32 billion) from the previous year, thanks to successful AI investments.
The tech powerhouse has invested $34.6 billion in OpenAI and divested its share in chip manufacturer Nvidia last year to allocate funds for further investments in AI and data centers.
Recently, SoftBank launched a battery business in Japan aimed at developing next-generation electric power infrastructure in anticipation of the increased electricity demand driven by AI.
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