SoftBank Shares Plunge After OpenAI Rules Out 2026 IPO

SoftBank Group Corp. shares fell sharply on Monday, September 14, 2026, after OpenAI CEO Sam Altman ruled out a public listing for the company this year and other leading artificial intelligence executives called for a slower pace of development due to safety concerns. The Japanese technology investor's stock dropped over 11% on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, making it one of the worst performers on the Nikkei 225 index, which itself declined about 2%. The selloff was triggered by Altman's confirmation in a weekend interview that OpenAI will not pursue an initial public offering in 2026. This development removes a near-term opportunity for SoftBank, one of OpenAI's largest backers, to realize returns on its substantial investment. SoftBank has committed nearly $65 billion to OpenAI, with the final $10 billion installment scheduled for October 1. Investor anxiety was compounded by public comments from Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, who urged developers to slow the creation of cutting-edge AI models, citing potential risks to humanity. This call for caution was supported by other prominent technology figures, including SpaceX CEO Elon Musk and Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis.