TNB Tech Minute: SoftBank CEO Dismisses Idea of AI Data Centers in Space

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
Many companies are struggling to scale their AI deployments or even move them past the pilot stage. Often the problem isn't technology, but organizational misalignment around goals, processes, and incentives. At the break, join Caroline Roach, a senior partner, IBM Consulting, to learn why.

**Julie Chang** (0:16)
Here's your afternoon TNB Tech Minute for Tuesday, June 23rd. I'm Julie Chang for The Wall Street Journal. SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Sun dismissed the idea of building AI data centers in space, saying the costs outweigh potential benefits. At an annual shareholder meeting for SoftBank's mobile unit today, Sun said the benefit of space data centers is lower electricity cost, but added that power makes up only 7% of the total cost of running a data center. Sun predicted that the winner in the race to build data center capacity will be decided in the next seven years, and said SoftBank will focus on building a formidable data center capacity on Earth.
We exclusively report that Walmart is acquiring French ad tech firm vibe.co for $1.4 billion to better compete with Amazon for advertising revenue. Vibe enables advertising through connected televisions, particularly for small and medium-sized advertisers with smaller budgets. People familiar with the matter say the deal includes a $1.2 billion cash payout to Vibe, plus around $180 million for Vibe's top executives to stay on at Walmart for four years. The deal is Walmart's largest since its $2.3 billion purchase of TV maker Vizio in 2024
Finally, Tesla sales in Europe more than doubled last month, marking the fourth consecutive month of growth for the EV maker. That's according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association. Elon Musk's car maker was helped by the revamped Model Y and aggressive pricing. But three Chinese automakers grew even faster in May, BYD, Cherry and Leap Motor. The intense competition in EVs has put pressure on local car makers, Volkswagen, Stellantis and Renault. All three saw year-on-year sales declines.
And that's it for your TMB Tech Minutes. We'll have another Quick Tech Update in the morning.

**SPEAKER_1** (2:14)
Scaling AI successfully requires more than the right technology. Here again is Caroline Roach, Senior Partner, IBM Consulting.

**Caroline Roach** (2:21)
The biggest thing that we were talking about a year ago is what model to use. And the biggest thing that I'm talking about with my clients now is how do I drive change within my organization.

**SPEAKER_1** (2:33)
Companies able to identify correct and then avoid misalignment will be best positioned to deliver meaningful business value from AI.

**Caroline Roach** (2:39)
The organizations that are the most successful set very clear targets and have several priorities that are very clear across the enterprise. The technology is really good, but if you're not changing your organizational alignment, not incentivizing your people correctly, not looking at workflows, you're not going to see real value with it.

**SPEAKER_1** (3:00)
Visit ibm.com/think/leadership to learn how building organizational alignment can help deliver AI deployments that scale and drive growth.

**SPEAKER_4** (3:08)
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