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SoftBank Founder Says AI Race Will Be Decided by Earth Data Centers, Not Orbital Projects
Masayoshi Son said space-based facilities offer little advantage because electricity is a minor cost compared with chips and hardware. SoftBank will instead expand terrestrial data centers and launch a U.S. neocloud service in 2026.
Japan TimesAudio version
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Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank Group, said building data centers in space holds little merit for winning the AI race, which he argued will be decided by computing power on Earth. Son spoke during an annual shareholder meeting for SoftBank’s mobile unit on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.
Electricity costs represent only a small fraction of data-center operating expenses relative to chips and other hardware, Son said.
Any savings from orbital locations would be offset by higher transport fees, maintenance expenses and communication delays, he added. “In the battle for AI, the next few years will be far more important than what might happen a decade or so from now,” Son said after a shareholder asked whether SoftBank planned projects similar to those announced by SpaceX and Blue Origin.
While describing Elon Musk as a “remarkable agent of change,” Son stated that SoftBank will concentrate on building “formidable” data-center capacity on Earth.
“He who strikes first wins,” he said. Son has committed about $65 billion to OpenAI and pledged hundreds of billions of dollars for data centers and related infrastructure worldwide.
The Japanese neocloud business is scheduled to launch in 2026. Son also said AI remains in its early stages and offers scope for “ten-fold, a hundred-fold” growth, leaving room for OpenAI and rivals including Anthropic PBC and Google.
