Apple to invest $1 billion in SoftBank tech fund

By Barry Eitel

SAN FRANCISCO (AA) – Apple revealed Wednesday that it is pouring $1 billion in what is now the world’s largest technology investment fund,

International tech giants Qualcomm and Foxconn also announced this week that they are joining the project, tentatively called the Vision Fund, as well as billionaire Oracle founder Larry Ellison.

The outpouring of support allowed the Vision Fund, initiated by Japan’s SoftBank Group in October to reach its $100 billion weeks ahead of schedule.

"We've worked closely with SoftBank for many years and we believe their new fund will speed the development of technologies which may be strategically important to Apple,” Josh Rosenstock, Apple spokesman, said in a statement.

The fund has earned the praise of President-elect Donald Trump. Masayoshi Son, the founder of SoftBank, has been actively courting Trump’s interest for weeks.

Last month, Son visited Trump Tower in New York City and pledged to invest $50 billion from the fund into American tech companies with the overall goal of creating some 50,000 jobs.

"[Son] said he would never do this had we not won the election!" Trump tweeted after their meeting in early December.

Apple has some $200 billion reserved for strategic investments and has not been shy in providing funding for companies across the world, including some that directly compete with American firms. In May, for example, Apple invested $1 billion in Chinese ride-share company Didi Chuxing, a notable Uber competitor.

Apple’s share in the fund pales in comparison to many other potential partners, many of which are based in the Middle East.

When it announced the fund in October, SoftBank pledged to invest $25 billion over the next five years. Additionally, the bank claimed it was in ongoing talks with Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia about a potential investment of $45 billion, which has not yet been confirmed. Key investors from Abu Dhabi and Qatar have also suggested they will add to the fund.