SoftBank plans to cut 20% of Vision Fund's employees, turning resources to AI bets

Golden Finance reported that a memo shows SoftBank will cut nearly 20% of its Vision Fund team worldwide to turn resources to founder Masayoshi Son’s massive artificial intelligence investment in the United States. The layoffs are the third round of layoffs by the flagship fund of the Japan Investment Group since 2022. The Vision Fund website shows that the fund currently has 44 employees. Unlike previous layoffs due to huge losses, this round of layoffs came after the fund announced its strongest quarterly results since June 2021 last month. This move shows that the fund is moving from a broad startup portfolio. Sources said that while the fund will still make new investments, the remaining employees will invest more resources into Masayoshi Son's ambitious AI plan. A Vision Fund spokesman confirmed the news of the layoffs but did not disclose details.