[Herald Interview] Rebranded SoftBank Ventures Asia to form new fund for AI startups in Asia

Despite new direction, Korea remains a pivotal market for SoftBank's venture capital unit dedicated to funding early-stage tech startups, says CEO SoftBank Ventures Asia, which recently renamed itself to reflect its broadened focus on startups in the Asia-Pacific region beyond South Korea, will form a new investment fund dedicated to artificial intelligence startups in Asia with "globally disruptive" products and services this year. The venture capital arm of Japan's SoftBank Group plans to establish within the year a new global investment fund to back promising AI startups in Asian countries other than China, according to SoftBank Ventures Asia CEO JP Lee. "This new fund will look for globally disruptive startups with AI technologies and services in the Asia-Pacific (region), excluding China," Lee said in a recent interview with The Korea Herald in Seoul. As for China, a market that the Seoul-based SBVA is now prioritizing, the VC will continue investing through the $300 million China Venture Fund I launched last year in partnership with TPG Growth, a US-based private equity firm with a sizable presence in Asia.