Shares of tech conglomerate SoftBank Group Corp. (OTC:SFTBY) plummeted over 11% in Tokyo on Friday as a sweeping global rout in artificial intelligence and semiconductor stocks triggered a massive downturn for market frontrunners.
The sharp decline tracked steep overnight losses on Wall Street, fueled by growing investor anxiety over whether hyper-scale technology infrastructure spending remains justified.
Global Chip Rout Spreads
The downward market spiral intensified following a weak U.S. trading session, during which the Nasdaq Composite fell 1.47%, and the VanEck Semiconductor ETF (NASDAQ:SMH) dropped 3.70%.
The contagion hit Asian markets rapidly on Friday morning. Alongside SoftBank’s steep tumble, Japanese chip-equipment manufacturers Tokyo Electron and Advantest dropped by over 8%, respectively, while memory chipmaker Kioxia tanked over 16% following an adverse U.S. patent lawsuit ruling.
Even Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (NYSE:TSM) saw its shares slip 2.34% on Thursday in the U.S. despite posting a sharp jump in profit.
TSMC raised its full-year capital expenditure forecast up to $64 billion, but investors focused instead on fears that the industry’s aggressive infrastructure investment cycle might be outstripping actual financial returns.
Valuations Under Scrutiny
Market analysts note that the correction highlights shifting short-term sentiment regarding high-flying tech trades rather than a structural industry failure.
"Another wipeout for U.S. tech and AI with recent momentum winners taking another leg lower after TSMC’s earnings yesterday in Asia were not seen as strong enough to justify further upside for the sector and raising concerns over excessive spending," Andrew Jackson, strategist at Ortus Advisors, told CNBC.
Jackson emphasized that the sell-off reflected an unwinding of crowded AI momentum trades rather than a deterioration in fundamentals.
SoftBank CEO Doesn’t Fear AI Bubble
The heavy losses mark a sudden reversal for global AI-related equities after months of outsized market gains.
The correction comes just days after SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son boldly predicted a $5 trillion annual AI investment by 2040, highlighting the stark tension between long-term tech optimism and immediate market pressures.
During his address at SoftBank World 2026 in Tokyo, he also dismissed concerns about an AI bubble as “absurd,” adding that AI could contribute 20% to global GDP, generating approximately $46 trillion in revenue and $23 trillion in profits.
How Has SFTBY Performed?
While SFTBY closed 6.18% lower in the U.S. on Thursday, at $17.76 apiece. At the last check, in Japan trading, SoftBank Group WAS 11.46% lower at 5,278 Yen per share.
In the U.S., SFTBY shares were up 24.78% year-to-date, down 18.90% over the last month, and higher by 100.11 over the year. Benzinga’s Edge Stock Rankings indicate that SFTBY maintains a weak price trend in the short, long and medium terms.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
Photo courtesy: Michael Vi on Shutterstock
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