SoftBank has received a new $40 billion loan to cover a $30 billion investment commitment in OpenAI as part of the AI model maker's record $110 billion raise last month, the Japanese conglomerate announced Friday.
Most impressively, the loan is unsecured and has a 12-month term, meaning it must be repaid or refinanced by next year. As reported by some media outlets such as CNBC, this could be an indication that lenders believe that OpenAI's long-awaited public offering will indeed take place later this year. Financing will be provided by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Goldman Sachs, and four Japanese banks.
OpenAI's IPO would be the largest public offering in history, so if it happens this year, it would likely give SoftBank the liquidity to resolve its debt in such a short period of time. SoftBank's new $30 billion investment in OpenAI brings SoftBank's total stake in the maker of ChatGPT to more than $60 billion.