Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son plans $50 billion AI and data center investment in Malaysia

Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son is planning to invest $50 billion in artificial intelligence and data centers in Malaysia, in what could become one of the largest technology commitments in Southeast Asia.

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim disclosed the plan on Saturday in Melaka, Bloomberg reported. Anwar said the SoftBank Group founder had already identified sites for the investment in Kuching, the capital of Sarawak state, and in Peninsular Malaysia.

The two men discussed the plan during a video call last week. Anwar said Son’s focus would be on three areas. “In what areas? AI, new technology and data centers,” Anwar said.

The $50 billion figure is equal to about 204.3 billion ringgit. Details on how the money will be deployed, when construction will start and how the project will be financed have not been announced. SoftBank had not commented publicly on the plan.

Anwar said the investment could create jobs for Malaysians, especially young people and university graduates. He said the country must build skills in AI, digitalization and semiconductors, and train its workforce so it can move into higher-value technology work.

He also said Malaysia must maintain political stability and a supportive investment climate to keep the confidence of international investors.

The plan would add to a wave of data center spending in Malaysia, which has become a regional hub for the computing capacity that AI systems need. Alibaba Cloud opened two data centers in the southern state of Johor in June, bringing its total in the country to five.

Sarawak has also drawn interest from SoftBank before. Earlier this month, SoftBank, ride-hailing company Grab and Sarawak state energy company PETROS were reported to be exploring AI infrastructure development in the state.

The Malaysian proposal is the latest in a string of large bets by Son on AI. This month alone, he has sought $100 billion from Gulf investors for AI expansion and eyed a $30 billion takeover of Allied Universal. SoftBank is also involved in a $500 billion data center project in Ohio, which Bloomberg describes as among the largest in the world, and is pursuing a project in France that could cost up to $84 billion.

Son founded SoftBank in 1981 and built it into one of the world’s biggest technology investors. His AI push has been heavily funded with borrowed money, including an $11.87 billion loan tied to his OpenAI bet, and his AI-related debt has kept growing.

So far, the plan rests on Anwar’s account of his call with Son. Investors will be watching for confirmation from SoftBank and for details on timing, partners and funding.