SoftBank's Masayoshi Son Picks Malaysia for US$50 Billion AI and Data Center Investment

Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Saturday that SoftBank Group chief executive Masayoshi Son has selected locations in Malaysia for a US$50 billion technology investment programme spanning artificial intelligence, new technology and data centres, a commitment that would significantly expand the Japanese billionaire's footprint in Southeast Asia's fast-growing digital infrastructure market.

Anwar said he held a video conference with Son on Tuesday during which the SoftBank founder confirmed he had chosen Sarawak — specifically Kuching — and peninsular Malaysia as the regions for the planned outlay, which the prime minister described as among the largest investments in the region. "He said he had chosen Sarawak – Kuching – and peninsular Malaysia to expand investment in what would be among the largest investments in the region, worth US$50 billion," Anwar said in a speech in Melaka. "In what areas? Artificial intelligence, new technology and data centres." SoftBank representatives did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside normal business hours.

The planned investment would deepen Son's global bet on AI infrastructure at a time when SoftBank is already pursuing some of the world's most ambitious data centre projects. The group is developing a US$500 billion data centre-focused initiative in Ohio — among the largest such projects globally — and a venture in France that could cost as much as €75 billion (US$84 billion). In Japan, SoftBank's telecom unit is building data centres in Hokkaido and in Sakai, Osaka. Earlier this month, SoftBank said it had signed framework agreements with partners to explore AI infrastructure and ecosystem development in Sarawak, signalling that the Malaysia plans were already taking shape before Anwar's disclosure.

Malaysia has emerged as a major destination for data centre investment, attracting commitments from Amazon, Microsoft and Alphabet's Google. The country recorded 385.7 billion ringgit (US$94 billion) of data-centre-related investments from 2021 through the first half of 2026, according to the Malaysian Investment Development Authority. The government is now seeking to extract greater economic value from the boom, pushing operators to support local suppliers while leveraging the infrastructure to spur AI adoption, home-grown innovation and higher-skilled employment. Malaysia has set a goal of becoming an "AI nation" by 2030.

Anwar said the investment would create new and better job opportunities, particularly for younger segments of the workforce, and argued that Malaysia's ability to attract such projects depends on confidence in the government and political stability relative to regional peers. He also said Malaysia needs to strengthen its capabilities in AI, digitalisation and semiconductors, as well as workforce skills, to move from back-end technology activities into front-end segments. For SoftBank, the Malaysia commitment would extend a strategy of anchoring AI infrastructure across multiple continents, positioning Southeast Asia as a key node in the global compute supply chain as demand for data centre capacity continues to surge.