Son Jeong-ui "Aggressive Investment in Omnipotent AI"... Appears in Public for the First Time in 7 Months

"ChatGPT, Immediately Writing the Sequel to 'Atom'"
"I Want to Become the Architect of Humanity's Future," Emphasized

Last year, amid controversy over investment failures, Masayoshi Son, chairman of Japan's SoftBank Group, who had been absent from public appearances for some time, has reemerged as an active evangelist for artificial intelligence (AI) investment, attracting international attention. He emphasized that the AI revolution led by technologies like ChatGPT will explosively transform society and declared his shift from a defensive strategy to aggressive investment.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 21st, Nihon Keizai Shimbun (Nikkei) reported on SoftBank's regular shareholders meeting that began at 10 a.m. that day. At the meeting, Chairman Son appeared publicly for the first time in seven months. His last public appearance had been during the Q2 earnings conference call for the 2022 fiscal year in November of last year.

At the shareholders meeting, Son expressed deep interest in AI and announced that SoftBank would invest in related businesses. He stated, "The AI revolution is growing explosively. SoftBank is preparing behind the scenes to respond and will take the lead at the forefront of this revolution."

He added, "I ask Yoshimitsu Goto, our Chief Financial Officer (CFO), to handle the company's procedural matters," and continued, "It may sound irresponsible, but I am dedicating myself to matters related to the essence and the future of humanity."

Son also emphasized that he continues to invent for the AI revolution. He said, "Whenever an idea comes to mind, I consult with ChatGPT daily and exchange wisdom," adding, "I feel that AI, as a reasoning machine, possesses infinite power."

He mentioned that AI is expanding into the realms of art and creativity. Son said, "I once had ChatGPT explain the final episode of the manga 'Uchuu Shonen Atom' (Astro Boy) and then instructed it to continue writing. It started writing immediately. I was amazed at its instant response."

He further stated, "The debate over whether AI will defeat humans or lose to them is long over," and raised his voice, saying, "In the future, intelligent robots will learn autonomously and become omnipotent beings." He also said, "Problems that humanity has not solved until now will be resolved."

Son revealed his optimistic view of AI, saying, "Accelerating AI evolution will reduce human suffering and bring about a freer and more enjoyable society." He cited the example of ARM, which SoftBank acquired. Son said, "Some say we wasted a lot of money after the acquisition, but now ARM has entered a period of explosive growth."

However, he said that regulation for AI is necessary. When a shareholder raised concerns about AI's side effects by citing the movie Terminator, which depicts a battle between robots and humans, Son responded, "There are risks. I believe regulation is necessary," and explained, "If we focus on preventive regulation and efforts from now on, AI can be operated safely. Our goal is for AI not to remain merely a human tool but to possess self-regulating rationality." The meeting concluded after all agenda items, including director appointments, were approved, followed by a video related to the information revolution. From start to finish, Son demonstrated his enthusiasm for entering the AI business.

The industry is watching closely to see if SoftBank can revive itself through this expanded AI investment. SoftBank had recorded massive losses due to Vision Fund investment failures. In response, Son did not attend the Q3 conference held in February for the first time since the company's founding, citing his focus on pushing forward ARM's planned Nasdaq listing. However, some speculated that this was to avoid investor dissatisfaction and media attention.

Son appeared to have been deeply affected by the Vision Fund investment failures. At the shareholders meeting, he revealed, "Around October last year, reflecting on my life as a manager and entrepreneur, I cried bitterly, wondering if it was okay to end like this." He added, "I wanted to be a builder of humanity's future," and mentioned that he subsequently reduced his managerial activities to focus on expanding AI-related businesses.

However, ARM ultimately became the top contributor to SoftBank's rebound. ARM has recently emerged as a key semiconductor company by achieving progress in architecture technology suitable for AI semiconductors. SoftBank aims to complete ARM's Nasdaq listing within the year, and if successful, it will be able to raise approximately $10 billion (12.931 trillion KRW) in funds.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.