SoftBank Chairman Masayoshi Son is reportedly planning to create a $1 trillion (approximately 1,370 trillion won) artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics industrial complex in Arizona, collaborating with Taiwan's TSMC and others.
On the 20th, Bloomberg News reported, citing multiple anonymous sources, that "Chairman Son is planning to establish a large-scale manufacturing hub similar to Shenzhen in Guangdong Province, China, through a project code-named 'Project Crystal Land' in Arizona, aimed at attracting advanced manufacturing." It is also said that this industrial complex may include production lines for AI-based industrial robots.
Bloomberg noted that SoftBank hopes TSMC, the world's largest foundry (semiconductor contract manufacturing) company, will play a key role in this project. It is unclear whether TSMC will express interest. TSMC has already planned to invest $165 billion (approximately 225.8 trillion won) in the U.S., with its first factory in Arizona already in mass production.
SoftBank is reported to have discussed tax incentive plans for corporations entering the industrial complex with Minister Howard Lutnick and officials from federal and state governments. In addition, Chairman Son is exploring the interest of several technology companies, including Samsung Electronics, in participating, and Bloomberg reported that companies invested by SoftBank's Vision Fund may also come into the industrial complex.
This project is still in its early stages, and its feasibility is expected to depend on the support of the Donald Trump administration and the Arizona state government. Chairman Son is reportedly considering plans to build numerous advanced industrial complexes across the U.S. if this venture is successful.
Earlier this year, SoftBank announced the 'Stargate' project to build AI infrastructure such as data centers in the U.S. in collaboration with OpenAI and Oracle, the developer of ChatGPT. They plan to invest about $500 billion (approximately 684.6 trillion won) in building AI infrastructure in the U.S. over the next four years.