Would you buy OpenAI’s shares even though the transaction might expose you to a liquidity crunch? SoftBank Group Corp.’s founder Masayoshi Son did just that.

OpenAI completed the largest funding round in Silicon Valley history last month, raising $122 billion ahead of a blockbuster public listing expected by the end of this year. SoftBank, already one of the ChatGPT maker’s largest shareholders, promised to put in $30 billion more.

This funding round, on the heels of $30 billion invested in OpenAI last year, is stretching SoftBank’s balance sheet ever further. Based on estimates from research outlet CreditSights, the Japanese conglomerate is staring at a $32 billion funding shortfall, including bond maturities over the next two years and other investment deals the company has agreed to, such as a $5.4 billion acquisition of ABB’s industrial robots unit.

© The Japan Times