Photo by and machines on Unsplash
This week, SoftBank and OpenAI announced something that sounds big on paper: a 50-50 joint venture in Japan to bring enterprise AI tools to businesses. They’re calling it “Crystal Intelligence.” Sounds pretty slick, right?
But here’s where it gets weird — and honestly, a bit revealing.
SoftBank isn’t just teaming up with OpenAI. It’s also a major investor in OpenAI. Which means a good chunk of the money that’s funding this new venture is, well… kind of just being moved from one SoftBank pocket into another.
This isn’t just about one deal. It’s a pattern that’s starting to pop up more often in the AI space.
So what’s the deal with Crystal Intelligence?
The joint venture is based in Japan and aims to bring OpenAI’s tech to enterprise clients — companies that want to use large language models and other AI tools in their daily operations.
From a business perspective, it’s a smart way for OpenAI to enter the Japanese market, and partnering with SoftBank gives them a strong local player with experience and connections.
Photo by Charles Forerunner on Unsplash
But here’s the catch: Since SoftBank is also an investor in OpenAI, and now jointly owns this new venture, some observers are starting to ask — is this new value being created, or is money just endlessly cycling between fundraising rounds, partnerships, and shared equity?
The circular money problem
On TechCrunch’s Equity podcast, hosts Kirsten Korosec, Anthony Ha, and AI editor Russell Brandom broke down what’s rubbing people the wrong way. They talked about how AI deals like this one are starting to look more like financial choreography than solid value creation.
Like, imagine you invested in a company. Then that company partners with you to start a new business. And both of you fund that business together. At some point, you have to ask: are we building a real product for the market, or just shuffling investment dollars around?
This isn’t just skeptics nitpicking. It touches on a bigger question about how sustainable the AI boom really is. When the same players keep cutting deals amongst themselves, it gets harder to tell what’s true innovation and what’s just optics.
Why this matters
Right now, AI is everywhere. From product launches to major VC investments, the industry looks unstoppable. But deals like Crystal Intelligence help peel back the curtain and show how tightly some of this growth is controlled by a handful of players who are both funders and beneficiaries.
Photo by Marija Zaric on Unsplash
It raises a hard question: In this rush to monetize AI, are we creating ecosystem value — or just building financial circles that look impressive but go nowhere?
As more AI ventures pop up in international markets, and as investors pull strings across startups, spin-offs, and strategic partnerships, it’s worth watching what’s being built… and who’s really collecting the rewards.
Final thought
Not every business needs to be world-changing. But for AI to stick around and stay healthy, it has to create more than headlines and closed investment loops.
Photo by Zulfugar Karimov on Unsplash
Otherwise, it risks becoming something worse than overhyped — it risks becoming hollow.
—
Want to dive deeper? Check out the full breakdown on the latest episode of TechCrunch’s podcast, Equity.
Keywords: AI, SoftBank, OpenAI, Crystal Intelligence, investment, financial growth, partnership
