Explore popular quotes and sayings by a Japanese businessman Masayoshi Son.
Last updated on September 9, 2024.
Masayoshi Son is a Korean-Japanese billionaire technology entrepreneur, investor and philanthropist. A 3rd generation "Zainichi Korean", he naturalized as a Japanese citizen in 1990. He is the founder, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Japanese holding company SoftBank, CEO of SoftBank Mobile and chairman of UK-based Arm Holdings.
Just believe in the future and direction of the capability that ARM has. Go deep and build a better future, both for the company and for its contribution to the industry. That's what I want ARM to do: invest more the future.
In the early stages of Internet in Japan, many said that Japanese and Americans are different. There are 10 reasons why Japanese Internet is not taking off. I said none of them are right; it's just a time lag. And, of course, Japanese Internet took off.
I don't like accidental success. It's what Bill Gates calls 'random,' a term he uses with the opposite of respect.
I use the iPhone and iPad every day, and I no longer touch PCs at all.
SoftBank has had a lot of businesses, but they've always ranked, say, third in Japan or fourth in the U.S.
Those who rule data will rule the entire world.
Being educated in the United States gave me a good understanding of American culture. I think I got a lot of influence from the entrepreneurial mind in the United States.
In tennis, you strike a ball just after the rebound for the fastest return. It's the same with investment.
Softbank has always been a service firm, and with the Internet, services became the center of the technology industry.
It would take enormous expertise for Amazon to win in every category. Do you think McDonald's could be number one in hamburgers, seafood, and Chinese food?
The best opportunity for return on investment is in the information revolution.
We only live once, so I want to think big.
The pension system ties you to companies much longer in Japan.
To have real success and roots in a society, there has to be a local champion, and hence we believe in identifying a local entrepreneur.
My philosophy is that the digital revolution will make mankind happier and more productive, and that won't change over the next 300 years. If you don't stick to that original philosophy, even perfect control of a bunch of companies isn't going to do you any good.
If you live in the States, you see the windmill signal on your smartphone all the time. It's like living in Beijing air. You have to remember the blue sky.
Traditional companies have to start looking into themselves to offer more opportunities in their companies by starting new subsidiaries and joint ventures.
I know I should not be a hindrance to SoftBank's future growth and that I need to pass on the baton to the younger generation.
In Internet in general, there are security, privacy, and many other issues.
Difficulty comes not only because of your mistakes, but once you try to make an excuse or accuse someone else, your mind stops thinking.
All human beings are the same. In the United States, people come from all over the world, all races, all backgrounds. And they're all doing what they want, many scoring huge successes. When I saw that, I became more open. It freed my soul.
I don't care whether the technology is invented by our employees. I want to bring everybody's innovations into our ecosystem together.
There will come an age when our average life expectancy will reach 200 years.
Our aim is to develop affectionate robots that can make people smile.
My belief is that we should never become overconfident.
It's a long journey. There will be good times, and there will be bad times, but SoftBank is always there.
I started Softbank in 1981, a year and a half after I came back from the United States, after graduating from Berkeley. I wanted to start my own company when I came back to Japan.
Uber is redefining the transportation industry now; Airbnb is doing it to the hotel industry. You can expect that to happen in every single industry.
As a student, I had a hobby of inventing new ideas for products. For me, thinking of new businesses is like inventing new products.
Alibaba model is the model that I am supporting in China, in India, and even in Japan.
Those who rule chips will rule the entire world.
InMobi is not just an India-focused company, but it is a global player.
I think I became an entrepreneur because I have my way of doing business... to do that, you have to have your own company. But if you have your own company, you're an outsider in the Japanese business world. It's difficult. But that's life.
Wisdom and knowledge are the most valuable things in the body.
Robots have already surpassed human beings in calculation and memory, but I have no doubt that the time will come when they will surpass in wisdom as well.
Of course Jack Ma was the guy who impressed me.
I'm the king of debt.
My original intent for investing into Sprint - the main strategy was to buy Sprint and T-Mobile at the same time, so we'd have a critical mass to fight against AT&T and Verizon. The U.S. government didn't accept that. They rejected it. So my fundamental strategy was broken.
It's easy to look at where your pieces are now and place the next one nearby.
If Japanese cannot have new babies quick enough, then the government should start importing workers faster.
Internet as a service is like culture that you have to understand, and each country has a local culture.
Mankind had the agricultural revolution, the industrial revolution, and now this third one, the information revolution.
Japan had an energy crisis. I thought, instead of just worrying about it, I should take some kind of responsibility to provide the solutions.
People usually compare the computer to the head of the human being. I would say that hardware is the bone of the head, the skull. The semiconductor is the brain within the head. The software is the wisdom. And data is the knowledge.
We believe the singularity is inevitable, and all businesses will be redefined as computers overtake humans in intelligence.
I believe this artificial intelligence is going to be our partner. If we misuse it, it will be a risk. If we use it right, it can be our partner.
Just like I gave Jack Ma and Alibaba the luxury of staying private for longer, I am now giving Arm the gift of being private. My only message to them now is take my investment and let's go, go, go.
I believe the continually advancing Information Revolution will lend us the wisdom and strength to address humanity's previously unsolvable problems and help us make a positive impact on all of society.
We saw a big bang in PCs; we saw a big bang in the Internet. I believe the next big bang is going to be even bigger. To be ready for that, we need to set the foundation, and that foundation is SoftBank Vision Fund.
Whenever there is a big difficulty, I don't make excuses. Instead, I say I will solve it even if everybody leaves.
I am going to support Ola.
The energy in Silicon Valley is because of the very talented engineers immigrating from around the world, especially Indians and Chinese. They are the best engineers, and Japan doesn't have enough of them.
A person's life is over in 50, 100 years. But a company lives on through the people it is composed of, and SoftBank group has to survive even after I'm gone.
I want to be number one.
I see a lot of opportunity in Internet-related start-ups, and second is the solar business.
Think big; think disruptive. Execute with full passion.
There will come a time when the human race and super intelligence will coexist to create a richer and happier life.
Indian software engineers are the best in the world; even in Silicon Valley, the best software engineers are Indians.
I always take bold moves. So it can have great return but with great risk.
I am the largest shareholder in SoftBank; I share the same interest as the other shareholders.