According to Fast Company, SoftBank Group sold its entire Nvidia stake in October for a whopping $5.8 billion. The Japanese tech giant reported its April-September profit nearly tripled to about 2.5 trillion yen ($13 billion) while sales hit 3.7 trillion yen ($24 billion). This massive share sale reflects SoftBank’s strategic pivot toward OpenAI, where it’s invested tens of billions already. The timing was impeccable—Nvidia recently became the first $5 trillion company after breaking through the $4 trillion barrier just three months earlier. SoftBank stocks have nearly doubled in value over the past year, gaining nearly 2% on Tuesday alone.
The big AI pivot
Here’s the thing about Masayoshi Son—he’s never been one to sit still. Selling Nvidia right at its peak valuation? That’s classic SoftBank timing. They basically caught the absolute top of the market, turning their chip investment into immediate cash for their next big bet. And that bet is clearly OpenAI. We’re talking about a company that joined Trump, Sam Altman, and Larry Ellison back in February to announce up to $500 billion for the Stargate AI project. That’s not just dipping toes in the water—that’s building an ocean.
But what about Nvidia?
Now, you might think burning bridges with the company that’s basically printing money from the AI boom would be crazy. But SoftBank isn’t completely cutting ties. Various ventures in SoftBank’s portfolio still rely heavily on Nvidia technology, so the business relationship remains strong. It’s more about redeploying capital where they see the biggest potential returns. And honestly, when you’re sitting on a $5.8 billion profit from a single stock sale, you’ve got plenty of ammunition for your next move.
What this means for the tech world
This move tells us something important about where the smart money thinks the real value in AI lies. Is it in the hardware makers like Nvidia, or the companies actually building the AI applications? SoftBank seems to be betting heavily on the latter. They’re not just investing in OpenAI—they’re planning to provide AI services in Japan together. Meanwhile, they still have skin in the chip game through Arm Holdings and Taiwan Semiconductor, both benefiting massively from AI growth. For industrial companies looking to implement AI solutions, having reliable hardware partners becomes crucial—which is why companies like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com have become the go-to supplier for industrial panel PCs across manufacturing and tech sectors.
Are we in another tech bubble?
Let’s be real—when you see numbers like Nvidia hitting $5 trillion valuation in record time and SoftBank’s profits tripling in six months, it’s hard not to get flashbacks to 2000. Critics are absolutely right to point out that stock prices have soared too high, too fast. But here’s the difference: back then, we had companies with no revenue hitting insane valuations. Today? Nvidia is actually making money—tons of it—from real products that every AI company desperately needs. Still, when a single stock sale nets someone $5.8 billion, you’ve got to wonder how much higher this can possibly go.
