SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son is expected to make a high-profile appearance at this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, fueling speculation over potential behind-the-scenes meetings with global tech leaders, including Samsung Electronics Chair Lee Jae-yong.
Although Son is not listed as an official speaker at headline events such as the APEC CEO Summit or the Future Tech Forum, industry sources say he is likely to attend exclusive dinners and informal gatherings held on the sidelines of the summit.
If Son makes a stop in Korea during the summit week, industry watchers believe a strategic meeting with Lee is probable, with discussions expected to center on next-generation telecommunications — particularly sixth-generation network technologies.
The speculation follows Samsung’s announcement on Friday of a strategic partnership with SoftBank to jointly develop four key technologies: 6G, artificial intelligence for radio access networks, AI and RAN, and large language models optimized for telecom applications.
Son has intensified his AI push in recent months. Earlier this year, he pledged up to $500 billion for the so-called “Stargate” project — a massive data center initiative in the US reportedly backed by US President Donald Trump. SoftBank is also moving to acquire a $30 billion stake in OpenAI.
Son recently hosted a closed-door investor summit for the Stargate project at Mar-a-Lago in Florida. The event brought together Korea’s top conglomerate chiefs — Samsung’s Lee, Chey Tae-won of SK Group, Chung Euisun of Hyundai Motor Group and Koo Kwang-mo of LG Group — underscoring the strategic weight of Son’s AI ambitions.
SoftBank’s aggressive AI bets have started to yield tangible results. In August, the company reported a first-quarter net profit of 421.8 billion yen ($2.87 billion), swinging back from a 174 billion yen loss a year earlier. Revenue climbed 7 percent on-year to 1.82 trillion yen, buoyed largely by gains from its AI-focused investment portfolio, which includes major stakes in Nvidia and OpenAI.
“AI will redefine every industry — and SoftBank will lead that transformation,” Son said during the company’s earnings presentation.
yeeun@heraldcorp.com
