tokyo – Shares of SoftBank Group experienced a important downturn on November 25th, reflecting investor anxieties over intensifying competition in the artificial intelligence sector. The decline followed the release of Google’s Gemini 3 AI model, prompting a reassessment of valuations for key SoftBank portfolio companies, most notably OpenAI. This comes after SoftBank recently liquidated its substantial Nvidia holdings-worth $5.83 billion-to bolster investments in AI, a move now viewed by some analysts as potentially premature.
SoftBank Group shares plunged on November 25th, wiping approximately $5 billion from the net worth of its founder and CEO, Masayoshi Son. The dramatic decline followed the release of Google’s new AI model, Gemini 3, sparking concerns about the future of OpenAI, a key SoftBank investment.
SoftBank stock fell as much as 11% during trading on November 25th, before partially recovering to close down 9.95% at ¥15,390. The drop extended a previous decline of 10.9% seen on November 21st, following a market holiday in Japan.
The sell-off reflects growing anxieties that OpenAI, in which SoftBank’s Vision Fund has made a substantial investment, may face increasing competition. The AI market leader’s position has come under scrutiny since Google unveiled Gemini 3 to widespread acclaim.
Earlier in November, SoftBank announced it had raised $5.83 billion (approximately ¥903.7 billion) by selling its entire stake of 32.1 million shares in Nvidia, funds earmarked for investments in key AI ventures, including OpenAI. This move now appears to have been preemptive as investors reassess the landscape.
As of November 25th, Masayoshi Son’s estimated fortune had decreased by $4.9 billion to $49.3 billion, causing him to slip to 32nd place on Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires List. He has also fallen to eighth place among Asia’s wealthiest individuals, down from third place earlier in November, now trailing behind Uniqlo founder and CEO Tadashi Yanai.
Meanwhile, Google’s stock rose 4.16% to around $331 in pre-market trading on November 25th, fueled by optimism surrounding its AI initiatives. The company recently launched Gemini 3, which has outperformed competing models from OpenAI and Anthropic on several benchmarks. The new chatbot is particularly lauded for its creative capabilities and a new image generation feature called “Nano Banana Pro.”
Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff shared his enthusiasm on X, stating, “I’ve been using ChatGPT every day for 3 years. Used Gemini 3 for 2 hours and I’m switching. It’s a game changer.” OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and xAI CEO Elon Musk have also praised the new AI model.
Some analysts are concerned that Google’s rapid advancements in AI pose a significant threat to OpenAI’s dominance. “The strong reception to Google’s Gemini 3 has raised concerns about a tougher competitive environment for OpenAI, which is weighing on the stock,” Mitsubishi UFJ e-Smart Securities market analyst Tsutomu Yamada told Bloomberg.
