Japanese conglomerate SoftBank is reportedly planning to establish an artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics company in the United States.
This is according to a report in the Financial Times (FT) on Thursday (April 30), which characterized the venture, known as Roze, as part of SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son’s efforts to turn his AI ambitions into reality.
The report added that Rose could go public as early as this year, citing sources familiar with the matter, and that SoftBank executives are aiming for a potential valuation of $100 billion.
Son wants to go public this year to offset the billions of dollars in funding the company has committed to, including a major commitment to OpenAI, these people said.
SoftBank declined to comment when contacted by PYMNTS.
SoftBank plans to hold an analyst day at its Texas data center facility in July to promote its initial public offering, the same person said.
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However, the FT added that some within SoftBank have doubts about the valuation and listing schedule, due in part to geopolitical and economic turmoil amid the US war with Iran.
At the same time, the US market may soon need to make room for three historically large IPOs: SpaceX, Anthropic, and OpenAI, the report added.
In related news, PYMNTS recently wrote about the growing investor focus on physical AI and vertical AI startups, with venture funding focused on companies building systems that operate in the physical world or are designed to automate workflows in specialized industries.
“This trend reflects a shift in the AI startup landscape from general-purpose tools to systems that can perform defined tasks in areas such as robotics, healthcare, logistics, and enterprise software,” the report said.
Interest in physical AI is growing amid discussions about the role robots can play in advancing artificial intelligence. Tesla CEO Elon Musk has argued that humanoid robots could chart a potential path to artificial general intelligence, suggesting that machines that can interact with the physical world could accelerate advances in autonomy and reasoning.
“While this claim remains speculative, the funding pattern suggests investors are betting that AI systems connected to real-world environments can become a major frontier of innovation,” PYMNTS added.
Meanwhile, another FT report earlier this month said nearly 40% of US data center projects were at risk of falling behind schedule. Citing data from satellite and AI analysis group SynMax, the report said 60% of projects scheduled for next year have not yet begun construction.
Industry executives interviewed by the FT said delays were due to issues related to permits and local opposition, as well as a lack of labor, power and equipment.
