SoftBank Group’s Vision Fund 2 is investing in U.S. artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI at a $3 billion (¥481.4 billion) valuation, Masayoshi Son’s latest bet on a sector he deems crucial to securing his legacy.
SoftBank will invest between $10 million and $20 million in the firm, which aims to use AI to compete with Alphabet’s Google search, according to people familiar with the matter. It’s investing as part of a larger $250 million funding round that triples Perplexity’s valuation and makes it one of the industry’s most highly valued companies.
The deal underscores how SoftBank is preparing to sharply accelerate its pace of AI investment. Its billionaire founder last week laid out a sprawling vision for the future of AI, including a commitment to realize what he called "artificial superintelligence.” Son talked about creating AI thousands of times smarter than any human, making his most grandiose pronouncements since SoftBank retreated from the market following a string of ill-timed startup bets.