Russia Moves to Fully Block WhatsApp as Kremlin Pushes State-Backed MAX App 
SoftBank Shares Slide After Arm Earnings Miss Fuels Tech Stock Sell-Off 
Paramount Skydance Appoints Rene Augustine as SVP of Global Public Policy Amid Warner Bros Takeover Battle 
Spirit Airlines Seeks Court Approval to Auction 20 Airbus A320/A321 Aircraft Amid Bankruptcy 
U.S. Commerce Department Reaches $252 Million Settlement With Applied Materials Over China Exports 
AbbVie Sues HHS Over Medicare Price Controls on Botox Under Inflation Reduction Act 
U.S. Judge Allows Jeffrey Epstein Sex Trafficking Lawsuit Against Bank of America to Proceed 
Xiaomi EV Deliveries Surpass 600,000 Units as SU7 and YU7 Drive Strong Growth 
SMIC Shares Slide Despite Strong AI-Driven Earnings as Margin Pressure Looms 
Gates Foundation Denies Financial Ties to Jeffrey Epstein Following DOJ Email Release 
More U.S. Investors Join Arbitration Against South Korea Over Coupang Dispute 
Minnesota Governor Says Trump Immigration Crackdown Could End Soon 
Novartis’ Vanrafia Shows Strong Phase 3 Results in IgA Nephropathy, Paving Way for Full Approval 
SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision 
Vale Reports $3.8 Billion Q4 Net Loss Amid Nickel Asset Impairment and Samarco Provisions 
Anduril Eyes $60 Billion Valuation in New Funding Round to Expand Defense Manufacturing and Autonomous Fighter Jet Development 
Senators Urge CFIUS Review of UAE Investment in Trump-Linked Crypto Firm World Liberty Financial 
BTIG has initiated coverage of SoftBank Group Corp. (TYO:9984) with a Buy rating, citing the Japanese investment conglomerate’s strong positioning at the intersection of artificial intelligence and robotics. The brokerage firm set a price target of 5,400 yen, suggesting roughly 22% upside from recent trading levels, as confidence grows around SoftBank’s long-term AI-driven strategy.
According to BTIG, SoftBank has a proven history of identifying and capitalizing on major technology shifts ahead of the market. Past investments in Alibaba Group, Yahoo, and Arm Holdings are highlighted as examples that reinforce confidence in CEO Masayoshi Son’s ability to navigate the next wave of innovation centered on AI. This track record underpins BTIG’s positive outlook as AI adoption accelerates across industries.
A central pillar of SoftBank’s AI strategy is its significant stake in Arm Holdings, which BTIG views as a core asset. Arm’s chip designs are widely used across smartphones, data centers, and increasingly in AI workloads, positioning the company as a critical enabler of next-generation computing. BTIG also pointed to SoftBank’s sizable investment in OpenAI and its recent acquisition of Ampere as strengthening exposure to both AI software and AI hardware, broadening its footprint across the AI ecosystem.
The brokerage emphasized SoftBank’s growing focus on what it calls “Physical AI,” which combines artificial intelligence with robotics. The establishment of a centralized robotics unit, Robo HD, along with an expanding robotics portfolio, was cited as a key differentiator compared with other global technology investors.
BTIG noted that SoftBank’s large and diversified portfolio helps absorb losses from past setbacks, such as WeWork, without undermining the overall investment thesis. Analysts added that the discount at which SoftBank shares trade relative to net asset value has narrowed in recent years, reflecting improved portfolio construction and greater control over strategic assets. Further discount compression could drive additional share price gains if execution in AI and robotics continues.
While SoftBank has invested aggressively in AI over the past three years and recently completed a reported $41 billion investment in OpenAI, BTIG acknowledged risks. Analysts flagged concerns around OpenAI’s heavy spending and warned that a bankruptcy scenario would significantly impact SoftBank. Even so, BTIG believes the company’s scale, diversification, and long-term AI vision support a favorable risk-reward profile.
