Tokyo, Japan — Japanese technology powerhouse SoftBank Group has forged a significant partnership with OpenAI, marking the launch of their new joint venture, SB OpenAI Japan. This 50-50 held company was announced on Monday at a vibrant event featuring SoftBank Chief Masayoshi Son and OpenAI Chief Sam Altman, who enthusiastically promoted their collaboration and extended invitations to Japanese corporations for participation.
At the event, Son showcased their ambitious AI service known as Cristal, brandishing the symbolically shiny blue crystal ball. The innovative technology aims to assist companies with a range of functions including strategic planning, marketing outreach, email management, and even deciphering legacy source codes. For now, Cristal will be implemented across SoftBank’s own subsidiaries, which include prominent entities like Arm, renowned for its semiconductor and software developments, and PayPay, which specializes in electronic payment services.
Investments for the integration of Cristal will be substantial, with SoftBank pledging to allocate $3 billion annually toward this initiative. "This will be super-intelligence for the company. I’m so excited," expressed Son during the "Transforming Business through AI" event, as he addressed reporters and guests.
Altman, meanwhile, unveiled details about the newly announced feature dubbed "deep research", which significantly enhances the capabilities of ChatGPT. This feature enables AI to conduct more sophisticated tasks, such as compiling reports by scouring the web and curting together thousands of sources at speeds many times faster than human capacity. He confirmed deep research will launch in Japan, and it will support the Japanese language.
"This partnership with SoftBank will accelerate our vision for bringing transformative AI to some of the world’s most influential companies, starting with Japan," said Altman, emphasizing the collaborative effort's potential.
Interestingly, this partnership doesn’t exist in isolation. SoftBank and OpenAI are involved with Oracle as part of the Stargate project—an ambitious campaign initiated under former President Donald Trump to inject up to $500 billion toward AI infrastructure development across the United States. Son highlighted aspirations for Stargate to extend beyond American borders, aiming for expansion to Japan and other international markets.
The broader technology sector is taking note as well. The announcement arrives on the backdrop of rising competition, particularly from new entrants like the Chinese company DeepSeek, which claims to have developed advanced yet cost-effective AI solutions.
Observers are curious about what this dynamic joint venture might mean for both the domestic and international tech landscapes, as SoftBank and OpenAI’s relationship grows. Not only are these companies poised to potentially reshape AI services across industries, but their collaborative steps may set new standards for technological partnerships on the global stage.