SoftBank Group to buy Ampere Computing in $6.5bn deal

Japanese tech company adds to chip company portfolio to boost focus on AI

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SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son attends an event to pitch artificial intelligence to companies in Tokyo on Feb. 3 © Reuters

March 20, 2025 10:22 JST

Updated on March 20, 2025 20:32 JST

SANTA CLARA, California/TOKYO (Reuters) -- Japanese technology investor SoftBank Group is accelerating its move into chip technology companies with the $6.5 billion purchase of Ampere Computing, a U.S. chip startup founded by the former president of Intel.

The all-cash deal announced on Wednesday comes as SoftBank steps up its investment in the infrastructure needed to power artificial intelligence, which founder Masayoshi Son has latched on to as his latest grand bet on a transformative technology.