Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 6
SoftBank Posts $2.2 Billion Q1 Profit as Intel, ByteDance Gains Beat Forecasts
Updated
Updated · CNBC · Aug 6

SoftBank Posts $2.2 Billion Q1 Profit as Intel, ByteDance Gains Beat Forecasts

1 articles · Updated · CNBC · Aug 6

Summary

  • 347.3 billion yen in June-quarter net profit topped the 120.23 billion yen analyst consensus, though SoftBank's bottom line still fell nearly 18% from a year earlier.
  • A 1.3 trillion yen gain on SoftBank's Intel stake powered its separate investment arm to 1.05 trillion yen segment profit after the chipmaker's shares surged nearly 400% over 12 months.
  • Vision Funds added $1.7 billion in value, led by a $2.2 billion rise in ByteDance that offset declines including PayPay, leaving the segment with a slim 5.4 billion yen profit.
  • OpenAI contributed no gain or loss this quarter even after SoftBank said it has already invested $55 billion of a planned $60 billion commitment for about 13% ownership.
  • The results land as investors question returns from SoftBank's AI push: its AI computing segment lost 200.8 billion yen and the stock is down about 34% from June's record high.

Insights

How is SoftBank funding its $60 billion OpenAI obsession while bleeding cash in its core AI computing division?
Will SoftBank's massive 16.3 trillion yen debt trigger a crisis if its volatile AI and tech paper gains suddenly evaporate?
Can a $457 million lifeline to Graphcore really help SoftBank dethrone Nvidia in the fierce AI chip wars?