Masayoshi Son and Sam Altman see no end to AI demand and scaling

SoftBank Group founder Masayoshi Son and OpenAI chief Sam Altman see insatiable demand for artificial intelligence (AI) that makes it imperative to keep building ever more computing capacity.

Speaking via teleconference at SoftBank World, the two business partners argued that advancing AI would lead to new jobs that are not yet imagined, and the advancement of robotics will help kickstart a “self-improvement” loop.

“As we drive the cost of AI down, more people want to use it,” Altman said in response to Son’s question about diminishing returns from further expansion. “So if we make the cost of AI 10 times cheaper, people wanna use it 30 times as much or whatever. And the demand for intelligence in the world just seems to be huge.”

The theme of their conversation, in front of an audience of Japanese business and enterprise leaders, was primarily about self-replicating innovation. Altman mentioned robots that would be able to build other robots and Son leaned heavily into the idea of AI agents learning independently and then creating new ones to enhance productivity. He wants to deploy a billion AI agents within the SoftBank group this year and design an operating system for them.

In February, Son unveiled a 50-50 venture between SoftBank’s telecom unit and OpenAI, underscoring his commitment to support the ChatGPT operator’s AI endeavours. The venture will market an enterprise AI product called Cristal intelligence to local industries from automakers to retailers. SoftBank’s group companies are adopting the US startup’s tools and will spend US$3 billion per year on those services.

Son’s involvement with OpenAI extends far beyond enterprise customers. SoftBank said it will invest as much as US$30 billion in the US company, a plan that’s contingent on OpenAI’s restructuring of its complex operational structure. Son also joined with Altman for the US$500 billion Stargate project to build data centres and other AI infrastructure across the US.

“As we think about scaling in the future, way beyond 10 gigawatts, we will need new technologies and new construction,” Altman told Son. Neither executive addressed the challenges around providing energy for such large-scale projects, nor the potential downsides if their expectations for runaway demand do not fully materialise.

SoftBank shares rallied 38 per cent in June for its best such performance in two decades as shareholders cheered Son’s bold plans and aggressive spending. The stock, however, continues to trade at a discount to the company’s total assets, weighed down by risks arising from complex financing plans. BLOOMBERG