TOKYO — According to disclosures filed with the Tokyo Stock Exchange, official market data from the Japan Exchange Group, and company filings, shares of SoftBank Group Corp. fell more than 9% Friday as a broad sell-off in artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related stocks spread across Asia, following steep losses on Wall Street that erased billions of dollars in market value from AI leaders and chipmakers. 

The decline marked one of SoftBank’s sharpest single-day losses this year and reflected growing investor concerns over whether the massive wave of spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure will generate returns sufficient to justify elevated market valuations.

SoftBank has become one of the world’s largest investors in artificial intelligence through its holdings in Arm Holdings, investments in AI startups, and multi-billion-dollar commitments to AI infrastructure projects. As sentiment toward the sector weakened, investors broadly reduced exposure to companies viewed as heavily tied to the AI investment cycle. 

The selling extended well beyond SoftBank. Japanese semiconductor equipment manufacturers, including Advantest and Tokyo Electron, also posted significant losses, while technology suppliers across South Korea and Taiwan came under heavy pressure as investors reassessed expectations for AI-driven earnings growth. 

In South Korea, major memory chip producers Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix experienced sharp declines, contributing to broad weakness in the Korean equity market. Taiwan’s semiconductor sector also retreated despite continued strong demand for advanced chips used in artificial intelligence applications. 

The latest wave of selling followed a difficult trading session on Wall Street, where semiconductor manufacturers, AI infrastructure companies, and other high-growth technology stocks declined as investors questioned whether the industry’s unprecedented capital expenditures could continue at the current pace. The pullback reflected a broader shift toward risk reduction after months of exceptional gains fueled by enthusiasm surrounding generative AI. 

Despite the market volatility, industry fundamentals remain strong. Major cloud computing providers and technology companies continue investing hundreds of billions of dollars in AI data centers, advanced processors, networking equipment, and energy infrastructure. Demand for high-performance computing remains elevated as businesses accelerate deployment of generative AI applications across nearly every sector of the economy. 

Analysts note that recent market movements appear driven more by valuation concerns than by evidence of weakening demand. After substantial gains over the past year, many AI-related companies were trading at historically high multiples, leaving little room for disappointment when investors reassessed future earnings expectations. 

For SoftBank, the decline underscores how closely the company’s market value has become tied to the outlook for artificial intelligence. Through its ownership stake in Arm Holdings and continued investments in AI technologies, SoftBank remains among the companies most exposed to shifts in investor sentiment surrounding the global AI boom.

Market participants will now focus on upcoming corporate earnings reports and capital spending guidance from the world’s largest technology companies. Those results are expected to provide investors with a clearer indication of whether demand for AI infrastructure remains strong enough to support continued expansion across the semiconductor industry. 

JBizNews Desk | Tokyo

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