Donald Trump

Masayoshi Son, the CEO of Japanese investment holdings firm Softbank Group, announced on Dec. 16 that his firm would invest at least $100 billion in the United States to build artificial intelligence infrastructure.
The announcement was made at President-elect Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida. According to Trump, this partnership will create 100,000 jobs focused on AI — though details remain scarce as of the time of this article’s publication.&nbsp;<iframe width="100%" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/j2SmLocQOJ4" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>
During the announcement, Son and Trump exchanged lighthearted banter, with the president-elect playfully pushing to double the initial amount. Laughing, Son praised Trump as a “great negotiator” and promised to “try and make it happen.”
<h2 id="trump-2-0">Trump 2.0</h2>
President-elect Trump and Son share a long-standing relationship, having established a similar partnership during Trump’s first administration in 2016.
At the time, Softbank Group <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://www.foxbusiness.com/politics/trump-says-softbank-to-invest-50-billion-in-united-states" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">pledged</a> $50 billion to the US for infrastructure with the promise to create 50,000 new jobs. It’s unclear whether any jobs were created, though a report from CNBC indicates the funds were paid out by 2020.&nbsp;
The Department of the Treasury did not immediately return a request for comment from Cointelegraph. The Treasury’s Committee on Foreign Investments is exempt from disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act.
Meanwhile, under the second Trump administration, Softbank likely faces a much less restrictive foreign trade and investment market in the US than it did in years prior. Trump has vowed to <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/trump-advisers-explore-slim-abolish-bank-watchdogs-wsj" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">cut and/or consolidate banking regulators</a> and <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/maryroeloffs/2024/12/10/trump-says-companies-investing-1-billion-in-us-will-soar-through-environmental-regulations/" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">promised</a> to fast-track any investments over $1 billion to include environmental impact regulations.&nbsp;
<h2 id="softbank-s-ai-ambitions">Softbank’s AI ambitions</h2>
Son’s partnership with Trump comes amid a regrowth period for the company. After <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/softbank-lost-99-dotcom-bubble-burst-artificial-intelligence-ai" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">losing 99% of its value</a> when the dot-com bubble burst between 2000-2002, the firm has climbed back to prominence.&nbsp;
Related: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/softbank-ceo-says-company-purpose-create-artificial-super-intelligence" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">Softbank CEO says company’s purpose is to create ‘artificial super intelligence’</a>
Analysts have largely attributed the recovery to the firm’s strategic AI investments, including <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/news/softbank-invests-1-5-billion-in-openai-tender-offer" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">a $1.5 billion buy-in to ChatGPT maker OpenAI</a> in November 2024. 
The recent uptick comes in spite of a string of failures associated with its “Vision” investment arm, including the shuttering of WeWork, which <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/softbanks-losses-on-wework-total-15-billion-2023-11" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">cost</a> the firm more than $14 billion.
As of late 2024, Softbank has approximately $175 billion in assets and equivalents, but it’s unclear how much of that is available for immediate investment. According to Trump and Son, Softbank Group will pay the full $100 billion by the end of 2028.&nbsp;
Magazine: <a data-ct-non-breakable="null" href="https://cointelegraph.com/magazine/13-christmas-gifts-bitcoin-crypto-degens-will-love/" rel="null" target="null" text="null" title="null">13 Christmas gifts that Bitcoin and crypto degens will love</a>

Softbank announces $100B investment in US AI infrastructure

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Cointelegraph

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