Masayoshi Son
Masayoshi Son is the Founder and CEO of SoftBank, the Japanese media technology conglomerate and investment powerhouse. Under his leadership, SoftBank has repeatedly shaken up entire industries with blockbuster acquisitions of companies like Sprint and prescient investments in startups like Alibaba. Son is a legendary entrepreneur, philanthropist, and one of the world's most influential global tech investors. His first Vision Fund, raised in 2017, had more than $100 billion in capital to invest in emerging technologies, from chipmaking to robotics to ride hailing and food delivery. Investors in his Vision Fund include Apple, Qualcomm, Foxconn, the family office of billionaire Larry Ellison and Saudi Arabia's sovereign fund. Today, Son is investing billions of dollars in artificial intelligence, including in the $500 billion Stargate Project, in partnership with OpenAI, Oracle and MGX, to build AI infrastructure in the U.S.
Masayoshi Son Professional Experience / Academic History
Professional Experience
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Founder, Chairman and CEO
Academic History
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B.A., Economics
CURRENT AFFILIATIONS
Director, Z Holdings Corporation
Chairman, Stargate
Son is a visionary tech entrepreneur and dealmaker who built SoftBank from a telecomm innovator to AI-focused investment giant.
Son, considered one of the world's most powerful investors, has invested in various companies, including Uber, Yahoo!, DoorDash, Alibaba, the ill-fated WeWork, and more.
Under his leadership,The Vision Funds have invested in over 400 companies, including ride-share firm Grab, Korean e-commerce leader Coupang and India's food-delivery platform Swiggy.
SBG and its portfolio companies cover a range of technologies, including advanced telecommunications, internet services, AI, smart robotics, IoT and clean energy.
RECOGNITIONS
2024 Time 100 AI
2018 Order of the Rising Sun
2017 The Asian Awards' Entrepreneur of the Year
2013 Forbes World's Most Powerful People
PHILANTHROPY
Following the Great East Japan earthquake, Son founded the Renewable Energy Council, the Great East Japan Earthquake Recovery Initiatives Foundation and the Renewable Energy Institute.
In 2016, the Masason Foundation was established to provide an environment that enables youth with high aspirations and exceptional talents to develop their skills, and to support those who will create the future.