Softbank’s $100B Chip Company Aims to Rival Nvidia

MetaversePlanet February 20, 2024

0 1 minute read

The founder of Softbank is aiming to secure $100 billion to establish an artificial intelligence chip company poised to compete with Nvidia. Out of this total, $30 billion is expected to come from Softbank itself.

Tech giants are increasingly concerned about Nvidia’s dominance in the AI sector, with both products and companies eager to challenge Nvidia’s leadership.

In this vein, Masayoshi Son, the founder of SoftBank Group, is seeking to raise $100 billion for a new chip startup named Project Izanagi, intended to be a contender against Nvidia.

A competitor to Nvidia is coming

Softbank's $100B Chip Company Aims to Rival Nvidia

Project Izanagi is set to rival Nvidia and also contribute to the development of artificial general intelligence (AGI). Although aiming for a $100 billion investment is ambitious, Softbank is expected to provide a significant portion of this investment.

Reports indicate that the company plans to contribute $30 billion, with the remaining $70 billion potentially sourced from Middle Eastern institutions and investment funds. The specifics of financing and execution are still under discussion, but the project is anticipated to expand as plans solidify.

For context, Softbank acquired the chip design company Arm in 2016. This new chip startup could fulfill the vision initiated with Arm, achieving vertical integration from design to production.

It remains to be determined whether Project Izanagi’s AI processors will utilize technologies like the instruction set architecture (ISA) developed by Arm.

Establishing a chip company to compete with Nvidia in the AI field is a challenging endeavor. AMD serves as a prime example, with its AI hardware matching Nvidia’s in terms of power and efficiency. However, Nvidia’s true advantage extends beyond hardware to its widely adopted CUDA software platform.