Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang disclosed a remarkable missed opportunity during a conversation with SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son at Nvidia’s AI summit in Tokyo on Wednesday. Huang revealed that approximately a decade ago, Son offered to lend him money to buy out Nvidia entirely and take the company private—a decision that, had it been accepted, would have resulted in one of the most lucrative tech investments in history.
According to Huang’s recollection, Son approached him around 2016, telling him that the stock market didn’t understand Nvidia’s true value and that his “journey of suffering” would continue because he was “inventing the future.” At the time, Nvidia was trading below $2 per share on a split-adjusted basis. Today, the AI microchip maker stands as the world’s most valuable listed company with a market capitalization of $3.6 trillion, with shares trading at approximately $148.
The conversation between the two tech titans revealed multiple missed opportunities for SoftBank. Son made his buyout offer just one month after SoftBank acquired Arm, the chip designer, for $32 billion in fall 2016. The executives also discussed the possibility of merging Nvidia with Arm, which Huang described as “a good dream too.”
Perhaps even more painful for Son was SoftBank’s decision to build and then exit a 4.9% stake in Nvidia, selling it for approximately $4 billion in 2019. Had SoftBank retained that position, it would be worth more than $175 billion today—representing one of the most costly early exits in investment history. When Huang brought up this topic, Son playfully pretended to cry on his shoulder, with Huang jokingly consoling him: “We can cry together. Could you imagine if today, you were the largest shareholder?”
The missed opportunities underscore how dramatically the AI boom has transformed Nvidia’s fortunes. The company’s microchips have become critical infrastructure for powering artificial intelligence applications, driving unprecedented demand and valuation growth. Nvidia stock has surged nearly 200% in 2024 alone, boosting Huang’s personal net worth to $129 billion, ranking him 11th on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Meanwhile, Son ranks 130th with a $16.6 billion fortune, though he has grown more than $5 billion richer this year.
Key Quotes
Now I regret not taking you up. That was a great idea.
Jensen Huang said this to Masayoshi Son when recalling the SoftBank CEO’s offer to lend him money to buy out all of Nvidia around 2016. The comment highlights the extraordinary missed opportunity, as Nvidia is now worth $3.6 trillion.
The stock market didn’t understand Nvidia’s value, and his ‘journey of suffering’ would continue for some time because he was ‘inventing the future.’
Masayoshi Son told this to Jensen Huang about a decade ago, demonstrating remarkable foresight about Nvidia’s potential in AI computing before the current boom materialized. This prescient observation makes SoftBank’s subsequent exit from its Nvidia stake even more ironic.
We can cry together. Could you imagine if today, you were the largest shareholder?
Huang jokingly consoled Son after discussing how SoftBank sold its 4.9% Nvidia stake for $4 billion in 2019—a position that would now be worth over $175 billion. This lighthearted exchange masks one of the most expensive early exits in investment history.
Our Take
This conversation between two tech industry titans reveals the unpredictable nature of the AI revolution and the challenge of maintaining conviction during uncertain times. While Son demonstrated remarkable foresight in recognizing Nvidia’s potential, SoftBank’s inability to hold its position through the “journey of suffering” resulted in missing out on potentially $170+ billion in gains. The story illustrates a critical lesson for AI investors: identifying transformative technology is only half the battle—maintaining conviction through volatility is equally crucial. Nvidia’s dominance in AI chips has created a near-monopoly position that competitors are struggling to challenge, raising questions about market concentration in critical AI infrastructure. As AI continues to reshape the global economy, the companies controlling the fundamental hardware layer may capture disproportionate value, making Nvidia’s trajectory a case study in strategic positioning within emerging technology ecosystems.
Why This Matters
This story illuminates the extraordinary value creation in the AI semiconductor industry and highlights how difficult it can be to predict transformative technology shifts. Nvidia’s rise from a struggling graphics chip maker to the world’s most valuable company reflects the central role of specialized AI hardware in the current technological revolution. The company’s chips have become essential infrastructure for training and running large language models and other AI applications, creating a near-monopoly position in a critical market.
The missed opportunities by SoftBank—both the buyout offer and the early stake sale—serve as a cautionary tale about timing and conviction in emerging technology investments. For the broader AI industry, Nvidia’s valuation demonstrates the massive economic value being created in the AI supply chain, particularly at the hardware level. This has implications for competition, innovation, and investment across the technology sector, as companies and investors seek to identify the next transformative AI opportunity. The story also underscores how AI infrastructure companies may capture disproportionate value compared to AI application developers, influencing where capital and talent flow in the coming years.
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