SoftBank's Shares Surge Amid Optimism Over Stargate AI Push and PayPay IPO Plans

SoftBank Group Corp.'s shares surged up to 8% on Tuesday, driven by bets that the tech investor would capitalize on its AI focus and incorporate Foxconn's Ohio EV plant into its Stargate data center project with OpenAI and Oracle. This optimism comes as SoftBank aims to kick-start the stalled Stargate endeavor and benefit from a rush to build AI hardware in the US. The company's stock is up for the fifth straight day and on track to close at a record.

SoftBank Group Corp.'s shares surged by up to 8% on Tuesday, driven by optimism that the tech investor would capitalize on its focus on artificial intelligence (AI) and incorporate Foxconn Technology Group's EV plant in Ohio into its Stargate data center project with OpenAI and Oracle Corp. [1]

The Tokyo-based company, which is the unnamed buyer of the Ohio EV plant, plans to repurpose the facility to host a data center as part of the Stargate initiative. This acquisition comes after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the Stargate project in January, a private sector investment of up to $500 billion for AI infrastructure [2].

The stock's recent performance has been bolstered by SoftBank's gradual cashing in on some of its Vision Fund bets and the company's potential initial public offering of Japanese payments app operator PayPay [1]. The Vision Fund, which has seen a recovery in tech valuations and gains on holdings such as Coupang Inc., Auto1 Group SE, Symbotic Inc., and Swiggy Ltd., logged a ¥451.39 billion profit in the fiscal first quarter [3].

SoftBank's shares closed at a fresh record high ahead of the earnings release, driven by a recovery at the Vision Fund and the sale of assets such as its T-Mobile US Inc. holdings. The company reported net income of ¥421.82 billion ($2.9 billion) in its fiscal first quarter, more than double the average of analyst estimates [3].

The Stargate data center project, which aims to build AI hardware in the U.S., has been somewhat delayed but is now expected to see concrete talks begin soon. SoftBank is slated to invest as much as $30 billion in OpenAI and has inked a $6.5 billion deal to buy chip designer Ampere Computing Holdings [3].

The company's focus on AI hardware and infrastructure development positions it at the core of the AI revolution, with partnerships with TSMC, OpenAI, and Oracle on a $1.5 trillion AI infrastructure plan including Arizona chip manufacturing and Stargate data centers [4]. SoftBank's shares are expected to continue to benefit from market optimism around AI and infrastructure development, despite concerns over its ability to manage multiple mass-scale funding needs as interest rates inch up.

References:

[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-12/softbank-shares-surge-on-ai-hope-and-sign-of-stargate-progress
[2] https://za.investing.com/news/stock-market-news/softbank-acquires-foxconns-ohio-ev-plant-for-stargate-data-center-project--report-93CH-3829118
[3] https://finance.yahoo.com/news/softbank-swings-profit-nvidia-bet-063613840.html
[4] https://www.ainvest.com/news/softbank-triples-nvidia-stake-3b-boosts-tsmc-holding-ai-push-2508/