President-elect Donald J. Trump has announced a pledge with Japanese technology company SoftBank to invest $100 billion in the United States over the next four years. The investment is intended to create 100,000 jobs and focus on technology and artificial intelligence.
SoftBank’s chief executive, Masayoshi Son, had previously promised a $50 billion commitment to the US after Trump’s election in 2016. However, Trump has asked him to double that amount, which Son said he can afford. The investment is expected to come from SoftBank’s balance sheet and money raised alongside partners.
Son started SoftBank in Tokyo in 1981 and has built it into one of the largest technology investors in the world. The company’s Vision Fund has invested in tech start-ups such as Uber and DoorDash, with half of its $100 billion coming from Saudi Arabia.
The investment is likely to focus on infrastructure needed to support artificial intelligence, including energy projects, data centers, and chips. SoftBank recently took the chip design firm Arm public and has also invested $500 million in OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2024/12/16/us/trump-softbank-investment.html