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SoftBank Group Corp.

Technology Investment Conglomerate and TelecommunicationsFounded 1981
Reviewed by Swet Parvadiya
Company data updated: October 2026

Founders

Who Founded SoftBank?

Masayoshi Son · Founded 1981 · HQ today: Tokyo, Japan

Who founded SoftBank?

SoftBank was founded by Masayoshi Son in 1981. It is now led by Masayoshi Son.

Founders
Masayoshi Son
Founded
1981
Headquarters
Tokyo, Japan
Number of founders
1
Current CEO
Masayoshi Son (since 1981)
Where was SoftBank founded?
SoftBank was founded in Tokyo, Japan in 1981.
When was SoftBank founded?
SoftBank was founded in 1981.
Who started SoftBank?
SoftBank was founded by Masayoshi Son.
How old is SoftBank?
SoftBank is 45 years old as of 2026.

Founding Story

Masayoshi Son founded Nihon SoftBank in Tokyo in September 1981 as a distributor of PC software and a publisher of computer magazines. In the mid-1990s he bought US assets including the COMDEX trade show and Ziff-Davis, and in 1996 he formed Yahoo Japan with Yahoo. In 2000 SoftBank put about $20 million into Alibaba, a stake worth more than $60 billion by Alibaba's 2014 IPO. The 2006 purchase of Vodafone Japan made SoftBank a mobile carrier, and in 2008 it became the first carrier to sell the iPhone in Japan.

Masayoshi Son

Co-founder 1981

Background

Masayoshi Son was an entrepreneur who recognized the structural inefficiency in the nascent Japanese software distribution market, where the industry was entirely fragmented and dominated by small, regional operators who lacked the capital to scale. His founding philosophy was centered on the radical idea of a 300-year corporate plan, dictating that the company must continuously identify and dominate the foundational technologies of the information age, from the early internet and e-commerce to mobile broadband and artificial intelligence. Son's specific decision to make a $100 million investment in Yahoo! in 1995 defined the company's trajectory, providing the capital required to execute its grand strategic vision and establishing the foundation for the company's eventual dominance as a global technology hegemon.

Role at SoftBank Group Corp.

Masayoshi Son was an entrepreneur who recognized the structural inefficiency in the nascent Japanese software distribution market, where the industry was entirely fragmented and dominated by small, regional operators who lacked the capital to scale. His founding philosophy was centered on the radical idea of a 300-year corporate plan, dictating that the company must continuously identify and dominate the foundational technologies of the information age, from the early internet and e-commerce to mobile broadband and artificial intelligence. Son's specific decision to make a $100 million investment in Yahoo! in 1995 defined the company's trajectory, providing the capital required to execute its grand strategic vision and establishing the foundation for the company's eventual dominance as a global technology hegemon.

Masayoshi Son was born in 1957 in Tosu. Education: University of California, Berkeley; Holy Names University.

SoftBank Group Corp.: CEO & Leadership History

Full timeline →

Ken Miyauchi

Former CEO of SoftBank Corp

2015 – 2021

As the long-time head of the domestic telecom division, he provided the stable, massive cash flows that allowed Masayoshi Son to pursue highly speculative tech investments.

Yoshimitsu Goto

Board Director, Senior Executive Vice President and CFO

2000 – Present

As CFO, he is the financial architect tasked with keeping the massive conglomerate solvent despite the catastrophic multi-billion dollar write-downs of the Vision Fund.

Masayoshi Son

Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer

1981 – Present

Son has been instrumental in the company's strategic evolution, spearheading the acquisitions of Vodafone Japan and ARM Holdings, and orchestrating the creation of the $100 billion Vision Fund, changing the company's business model and unlocking shareholder value.

Keep researching SoftBank

Who Founded SoftBank? FAQ

Who was the founder of SoftBank?

SoftBank was founded by visionary Japanese entrepreneur Masayoshi Son on September 3, 1981, in Tokyo, Japan.

What was Masayoshi Son's childhood and background?

Masayoshi Son was born in 1957 in Tosu, Saga Prefecture, on the southern Japanese island of Kyushu. Born into an ethnic Korean family (Zainichi) living in poverty alongside railroad tracks, Son faced harsh discrimination and vowed to become an extraordinary business success.

Who was Den Fujita and how did he inspire young Masayoshi Son?

At age 16, Son read a book by Den Fujita, the legendary founder of McDonald's Japan. Determined to meet him, Son flew to Tokyo and persuaded Fujita's assistants to grant him 15 minutes. Fujita gave Son two life-changing pieces of advice: learn English and study computers.

What did Masayoshi Son invent while studying at UC Berkeley?

While studying at the University of California, Berkeley, in the late 1970s, Son invented a multi-language electronic talking pocket translator. He sold the patent rights to Japanese electronics giant Sharp for approximately $1 million in 1979.

What was the famous "Apple Box Speech" at SoftBank's founding?

In September 1981, in a rented office in Nakano, Tokyo, Son stood on an overturned apple crate in front of his only two part-time employees and proclaimed: "In five years, I will have sales of 10 billion yen; in ten years, 50 billion yen; and one day, our revenue will be counted in trillions of yen." Both employees quit the next day, thinking he was insane.

What was the initial business of Nihon SoftBank in 1981?

Nihon SoftBank was founded as a wholesale distributor of packaged computer software for early personal computers (NEC, Apple, Sharp), acting as the essential bridge between software programmers and retail consumer electronics stores.

What health crisis nearly ended Masayoshi Son's life in the 1980s?

In 1983, at age 26, Son was diagnosed with severe chronic hepatitis B and told he had only three to five years to live. Hospitalized for over three years, Son read over 4,000 books, developed his 50-year business framework, and recovered thanks to experimental medical treatments.

Why did Son enter computer magazine publishing in the 1980s?

To stimulate software sales, Son founded computer magazines (Oh! PC and Oh! MZ). By controlling the dominant computer publications in Japan, SoftBank educated consumers on computing while advertising its software distribution catalog.

What was Son's philosophy regarding business risks?

Son lives by the Samurai philosophy of bold conviction: "If you want to win, you must bet big. If you bet small, you win small." He is famous for risking his entire net worth multiple times over four decades.

What philanthropic commitments has Masayoshi Son made?

Following the 2011 Fukushima earthquake and tsunami, Son personally donated ¥10 billion (~$120 million) and pledged all remaining CEO salary until retirement to support orphan relief and clean renewable energy development.

What is the Masason Foundation?

Founded by Son in 2016, the Masason Foundation provides comprehensive financial grants, research facilities, and mentorship to exceptional young prodigies under age 25 worldwide in robotics, mathematics, physics, and AI.

What is the enduring historical legacy of Masayoshi Son?

Masayoshi Son transformed Japan's insular post-war business culture, demonstrating that bold risk-taking, global vision, and unwavering belief in technology can create a generational empire that shapes the future of artificial intelligence.

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Content is for informational purposes only. Not financial advice. Data sourced from SEC filings, annual reports, and public records. See our full disclaimer and methodology.