SoftBank’s Arm to develop AI chips by 2025

Arm, a subsidiary of SoftBank Group, is venturing into the development of artificial intelligence (AI) chips with plans to launch its first products in 2025, the NIKKEI Asia reported on Sunday.

This initiative is part of SoftBank Group CEO Masayoshi Son’s 10 trillion-yen ($64 billion) strategy to establish the group as a leading AI player.

Arm’s goal is to have a prototype ready by Spring 2025, followed by mass production commencing in the fall of the same year through contract manufacturers.

Arm currently provides architecture designs to Nvidia and other chip developers, holding a dominant share of over 90 per cent in processor architecture for smartphones.

SoftBank will financially back the initial development costs, expected to reach hundreds of billions of yen.

Negotiations with major manufacturers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Corporation (TSMC) are already underway to secure production capacity.

SoftBank’s ambitions extend far beyond just AI chips. Son envisions a future powered by AI, encompassing data centers, robotics, and even power generation.

SoftBank sees a significant growth opportunity in the AI chip market, projected to reach $100 billion by 2029 and exceed $200 billion by 2032 according to Precedence Research.

The company believes it can capitalise on the current market leader Nvidia’s inability to keep pace with the growing demand.

SoftBank’s recent financial recovery, with a projected significant improvement in its fiscal 2023 earnings report, provides the financial muscle for this ambitious undertaking.

The vision extends to establishing AI-powered data centres equipped with SoftBank’s own chips across the globe.

Recognising the immense power needs of data centers, SoftBank plans to diversify into power generation through wind and solar farms, with an eye towards next-generation fusion technology.