OpenAI, the artificial intelligence company behind ChatGPT, has taken a major step toward going public by submitting a confidential IPO filing with the U.S — Securities and Exchange Commission on May 22, 2026. The company is targeting a listing between September and November 2026 and has set its sights on a $1 trillion valuation, according to AD HOC NEWS.

SoftBank’s Strategic Shift Toward AI

Japanese tech giant SoftBank is positioning itself to capitalize on the AI boom by reallocating capital away from cryptocurrency and toward OpenAI. The company recently sold its minority stake in Bitcoin financier Twenty One Capital to Tether for $679 million, allowing it to focus its resources on AI infrastructure. This move is part of a broader strategy to increase its stake in OpenAI, where it already holds about 11% of the company. SoftBank is reportedly considering a new investment of up to $30 billion, which would raise its total commitment to the AI developer to more than $71 billion.

SoftBank’s stock has already responded positively to the news; Shares surged nearly 20% on Thursday and gained another 11% on Friday, closing the week at ¥6,757. The rally was significant enough to push the Nikkei 225 index to a record high of around 63,339 points, as the company’s stock has gained more than 40% since May 20, pushing its market value above ¥40 trillion ($252 billion), according to TradingView.

SoftBank’s AI-Focused Portfolio

SoftBank has a history of backing high-growth technology companies, and its current portfolio is heavily weighted toward AI-led startups; In addition to OpenAI, the company is also preparing to file for an IPO with its power infrastructure unit, SB Energy. The news that OpenAI is nearing an IPO has helped dispel concerns about rising competition from companies like Anthropic PBC, Google, and xAI Corp., according to TradingView.

Takashi Nakagawa. A senior analyst at TokaiTokyo Intelligence Laboratory Co., said the market is “extremely pleased” to see OpenAI’s IPO potentially becoming a reality; he noted that an IPO would bring greater transparency to the opaque valuations that have surrounded AI companies. “Right now the stock is moving purely based on expectation,” Nakagawa said; “I want to see how OpenAI’s market capitalization will stabilize.”

Broader AI Sector Momentum

The AI sector is gaining momentum with several major developments, as Cerebras Systems, a California-based company that develops specialized chips for artificial intelligence, raised $5.5 billion in a landmark IPO on May 14, 2026. The IPO was the largest tech offering of the year, according to trendingtopics.eu. Cerebras’ shares opened at $385, more than double the issue price of $185, and closed at $311, giving the company a market valuation of approximately $66 billion.

This success highlights the strong investor appetite for AI-related companies. The rally in SoftBank’s stock has also been supported by gains in Arm Holdings Plc’s shares, which followed positive results from Nvidia Corp. and rising expectations for AI to proliferate across industries.