SoftBank and OpenAI announce a major partnership, with SoftBank committing $3 billion annually to utilize OpenAI's technology. A joint venture, SB OpenAI Japan, will focus on enterprise solutions in Japan. This deal follows reports of OpenAI seeking $40 billion in funding, potentially valuing the company at $340 billion.
SoftBank has pledged a significant investment of $3 billion annually for its own operations and subsidiaries to leverage OpenAI's cutting-edge technology, as announced in a joint statement on Monday. The collaboration also unveiled a new joint venture, dubbed 'SB OpenAI Japan ,' dedicated to promoting OpenAI's enterprise solutions exclusively to major Japan ese corporations.
This strategic move comes on the heels of CNBC reports confirming that OpenAI is engaged in discussions to secure a substantial funding round, potentially reaching up to $40 billion, led by Masayoshi Son's SoftBank, with a projected valuation soaring to $340 billion. The agreement grants SoftBank and its subsidiaries comprehensive access to OpenAI's advanced suite of tools, including ChatGPT Enterprise, OpenAI's API, customized models, and agent products, such as the innovative 'agent' capable of navigating the web to execute tasks on behalf of users, encompassing activities like vacation planning and form completion. It also encompasses access to OpenAI's latest agent feature, slated for release: 'Deep Research,' a tool designed to conduct intricate, multi-step analyses on the web. SoftBank has adopted a unified branding strategy, designating all OpenAI products utilized as 'Cristal Intelligence.' Arm, the British chip designer acquired by SoftBank in 2016, will also integrate OpenAI tools to enhance productivity across its operations, according to the announcement. During a live-streamed event held early Monday morning, jointly organized by SoftBank, SoftBank Group, OpenAI, and Arm, executives representing companies accounting for over half of Japan's total market capitalization were in attendance, as indicated by SoftBank. During the presentation, Son expressed his conviction that artificial general intelligence (AGI) – a loosely defined benchmark signifying AI capable of matching or surpassing human intellect across a broad spectrum of tasks – will materialize within less than a decade. Son, through a translator, emphasized his belief that AGI can be first achieved within large-scale enterprises, adding that realizing this goal necessitates 'a very substantial amount of money,' currently accessible primarily within large corporations. SoftBank is anticipated to contribute between $15 billion and $25 billion to OpenAI's funding round, according to two individuals privy to the negotiations who requested anonymity due to the ongoing discussions. If finalized, SoftBank's contribution would surpass its previous largest investment, the sources revealed. The plan outlines billions of dollars earmarked for investments in U.S. AI infrastructure. During Monday's presentation, Son expressed his enthusiasm for collaborating with OpenAI, Oracle, and other partners on the Stargate project. OpenAI's valuation by private investors stood at $157 billion previously. In late 2022, the company launched its ChatGPT chatbot, igniting a surge in generative AI adoption. Meanwhile, Chinese startup lab DeepSeek has garnered significant attention in the U.S., presenting novel competition to OpenAI. DeepSeek's app witnessed a surge in App Store rankings this week, and U.S. markets were shaken by reports that its powerful model was trained at a significantly lower cost compared to its U.S. counterparts. At an event held in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, hosted by OpenAI, CEO Sam Altman acknowledged DeepSeek's capabilities, stating that it 'is clearly a great model.' He emphasized that this development 'is a reminder of the level of competition and the need for democratic AI to win,' highlighting the 'level of interest in reasoning, the level of interest in open source.
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