TOKYO — SoftBank Group shares extended losses as investors continued to react to reports that OpenAI is considering delaying its planned initial public offering until 2027, raising fresh concerns about the timing of returns from one of the Japanese technology investor's highest-profile artificial intelligence bets.
SoftBank shares fell sharply in the previous trading session, marking their steepest one-day decline since August 2024, after a report that OpenAI was reassessing plans for a public listing originally targeted for later this year. The selloff contributed to a broad decline in Japanese equities, with AI-related stocks also coming under pressure as investors reassessed valuations across the sector.
According to people familiar with the matter cited by the New York Times, OpenAI's advisers have urged the company to postpone its market debut amid volatile technology markets and concerns that current conditions may not support the company's targeted valuation. The report said OpenAI is now weighing a listing in 2027 rather than later in 2026.
Neither OpenAI nor SoftBank has publicly confirmed a change in IPO plans. The companies had not announced any official timetable for a public offering.
SoftBank's stock had risen strongly in recent months as Chief Executive Masayoshi Son deepened the group's involvement with OpenAI through funding commitments and broader AI infrastructure initiatives. Investors have increasingly viewed the company's shares as a proxy for optimism surrounding OpenAI's commercial prospects and the broader expansion of generative artificial intelligence.
Market participants said the reported IPO delay prompted investors to reassess expectations for future gains tied to OpenAI and other AI-related investments.
"The news was negative for SoftBank Group as well as overall investors as AI is the centre of the market and the market wondered if there was anything negative in the industry outlook," Shuutarou Yasuda, a market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory, told Reuters.
The weakness in SoftBank weighed on Japan's benchmark Nikkei index, which erased much of the previous session's gains after reaching a record closing high. AI-linked companies elsewhere in Asia also came under pressure, including memory chipmaker Kioxia, as investors reduced exposure to technology shares.
Reports of a potential delay also rippled through global technology markets, with semiconductor shares and companies linked to AI infrastructure declining as investors questioned near-term enthusiasm surrounding high-profile AI listings.
As of June 29, neither OpenAI nor its advisers had announced a final decision on the timing of a public offering, and no revised IPO schedule had been officially confirmed.
