SoftBank secures $12B loan for OpenAI investment

SoftBank Group just took out an $11.87 billion loan to fund its investment in OpenAI, overshooting a previously reported $10 billion target by nearly 20%. The Japanese conglomerate, led by Masayoshi Son, continues to stack chips on the table in what has become one of the most aggressive corporate bets on artificial intelligence in history. The loan is the latest in a string of financing maneuvers designed to let SoftBank pour capital into OpenAI without having to sell off other assets. The $64.6 billion AI obsession The company has committed approximately $64.6 billion to OpenAI as of early 2026, accumulating roughly a 13% ownership stake in the process. The spending spree accelerated in March 2026, when SoftBank secured a $40 billion unsecured bridge loan. About $30 billion of that went directly into a follow-on investment in OpenAI as part of a broader funding round that valued the AI firm at approximately $730 billion pre-money. That round totaled roughly $110 billion, making it one of the largest private funding events ever. By August 2026, the company had added another layer: a $10 billion margin loan backed by its OpenAI shares, with Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan among the lende...