TOKYO: SoftBank Group Corp. Chief Executive Masayoshi Son blasted Japan on Thursday for not allowing ride-sharing services, calling it “stupid” and saying the country was lagging overseas rivals in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI).
“Ride-sharing is prohibited by law in Japan. I can’t believe there is still such a stupid country,” Son said at an annual company event aimed at customers and suppliers.
The comments reflect Son’s frustration with Japan where he built SoftBank’s domestic telecoms business, the cash engine that has powered his investments. The group has, however, focused its growing range of technology investments overseas.
Son has also been highly critical of the government previously when SoftBank was still a fledgling telecoms service trying to break up a cozy duopoly in Japan.
“A country that gives up on the future has no future,” Son told attendees at the SoftBank World event, saying Japanese business is lagging behind countries such as the United States and China in employing AI.
Japan outlaws non-professional drivers from transporting paying customers on safety grounds and the country’s taxi industry lobby has vigorously opposed deregulation.
Its strict rules have confined ride-sharing firms to providing limited services, with SoftBank and China’s Didi Chuxing saying on Thursday they will trial a taxi-hailing service — matching users to pre-existing taxi operators — in Osaka beginning autumn of 2019. Uber is also piloting a taxi-hailing service.
When asked for a response to Son’s comments, a spokesman for the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport said that an issue with ride-sharing services was that while the driver was in charge of transporting passengers, it was unclear who was in charge of maintenance and operation.
“The ministry believes that offering these services for a fee poses problems from the points of both safety and user protection, and careful consideration is necessary,” he said.
Ride-sharing is not the only service in Japan feeling the impact of government restrictions. Strict new rules on home-sharing came into force last month that have radically reduced the number of lettings on sites such as Airbnb Inc.
The curbs on Japan’s nascent sharing economy come despite a rapid rise in the number of inbound tourists likely to access such sharing services, and at a time when Japan is wanting to show its international face ahead of hosting the Rugby World Cup next year and the Summer Olympics in 2020.
While Son, an ethnic Korean born in Japan, has at times criticized the Japanese government, he can also be politically suave. He has praised US President Donald Trump with warm words and pledged to invest billions of dollars and create thousands of jobs in the United States.
SoftBank and its nearly $100 billion Vision Fund have invested in ride-sharing firms Uber Technologies Inc, Didi, India’s Ola and Southeast Asia’s Grab, as well as in other technology companies.
The event on Thursday saw presentations from executives at portfolio companies including Didi, General Motors’ autonomous vehicle unit Cruise and India digital payments firm Paytm E-Commerce Pvt Ltd.
Artificial intelligence is the common thread linking these companies, Son said, with that technology in the future able drive vehicles, diagnose diseases and power financial services.
SoftBank’s Son says Japan is ‘stupid’ to disallow ride-sharing
SoftBank’s Son says Japan is ‘stupid’ to disallow ride-sharing
- ‘Ride-sharing is prohibited by law in Japan. I can’t believe there is still such a stupid country’
- SoftBank and its nearly $100 billion Vision Fund have invested in ride-sharing firms Uber, Didi, Ola and Grab, as well as in other technology companies
How AI and financial literacy are redefining the Saudi workforce
- Preparing people capable of navigating money and machines with confidence
ALKHOBAR: Saudi Arabia’s workforce is entering a transformative phase where digital fluency meets financial empowerment.
As Vision 2030 drives economic diversification, experts emphasize that the Kingdom’s most valuable asset is not just technology—but people capable of navigating both money and machines with confidence.
For Shereen Tawfiq, co-founder and CEO of Balinca, financial literacy is far from a soft skill. It is a cornerstone of national growth. Her company trains individuals and organizations through gamified simulations that teach financial logic, risk assessment, and strategic decision-making—skills she calls “the true language of empowerment.”
“Our projection builds on the untapped potential of Saudi women as entrepreneurs and investors,” she said. “If even 10–15 percent of women-led SMEs evolve into growth ventures over the next five years, this could inject $50–$70 billion into GDP through new job creation, capital flows, and innovation.”
Tawfiq, one of the first Saudi women to work in banking and later an adviser to the Ministry of Economy and Planning on private sector development, helped design early frameworks for the Kingdom’s venture-capital ecosystem—a transformation she describes as “a national case study in ambition.”
“Back in 2015, I proposed a 15-year roadmap to build the PE and VC market,” she recalled. “The minister told me, ‘you’re not ambitious enough, make it happen in five.’” Within years, Saudi Arabia had a thriving investment ecosystem supporting startups and non-oil growth.
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At Balinca, Tawfiq replaces theory with immersion. Participants make business decisions in interactive simulations and immediately see their financial impact.
“Balinca teaches finance by hacking the brain, not just feeding information,” she said. “Our simulations create what we call a ‘business gut feeling’—an intuitive grasp of finance that traditional training or even AI platforms can’t replicate.”
While AI can personalize lessons, she believes behavioral learning still requires human experience.
“AI can democratize access,” she said, “but judgment, ethics, and financial reasoning still depend on people. We train learners to use AI as a co-pilot, not a crutch.”
Her work aligns with a broader national agenda. The Financial Sector Development Program and Al Tamayyuz Academy are part of Vision 2030’s effort to elevate financial acumen across industries. “In Saudi Arabia, financial literacy is a national project,” she said. “When every sector thinks like a business, the nation gains stability.”
Jonathan Holmes, managing director for Korn Ferry Middle East, sees Saudi Arabia’s digital transformation producing a new generation of leaders—agile, data-literate, and unafraid of disruption.
“What we’re seeing in the Saudi market is that AI is tied directly to the nation’s economic growth story,” Holmes told Arab News. “Unlike in many Western markets where AI is viewed as a threat, here it’s seen as a catalyst for progress.”
Holmes noted that Vision 2030 and the national AI strategy are producing “younger, more dynamic, and more tech-fluent” executives who lead with speed and adaptability. Korn Ferry’s CEO Tracker Report highlighted a notable rise in first-time CEO appointments in Saudi Arabia’s listed firms, signaling deliberate generational renewal.
Korn Ferry research identifies six traits for AI-ready leadership: sustaining vision, decisive action, scaling for impact, continuous learning, addressing fear, and pushing beyond early success.
“Leading in an AI-driven world is ultimately about leading people,” Holmes said. “The most effective leaders create clarity amid ambiguity and show that AI’s true power lies in partnership, not replacement.”
He believes Saudi Arabia’s young workforce is uniquely positioned to model that balance. “The organizations that succeed are those that anchor AI initiatives to business outcomes, invest in upskiling, and move quickly from pilots to enterprise-wide adoption,” he added.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Saudi women-led SMEs could add $50–$70 billion to GDP over five years if 10–15% evolve into growth ventures.
• AI in Saudi Arabia is seen as a catalyst for progress, unlike in many Western markets where it is often viewed as a threat.
• Saudi Arabia is adopting skills-based models, matching employees to projects rather than fixed roles, making flexibility the new currency of success.
The convergence of Tawfiq’s financial empowerment approach and Holmes’s AI leadership vision points to one central truth: the Kingdom’s greatest strategic advantage lies in human capital that can think analytically and act ethically.
“Financial literacy builds confidence and credibility,” Tawfiq said. “It transforms participants from operators into leaders.” Holmes echoes this sentiment: “Technical skills matter, but the ability to learn, unlearn, and scale impact is what defines true readiness.”
As organizations adopt skills-based models that match employees to projects rather than fixed job titles, flexibility is becoming the new currency of success. Saudi Arabia’s workforce revolution is as much cultural as it is technological, proving that progress moves fastest when inclusion and innovation advance together.
Holmes sees this as the Kingdom’s defining opportunity. “Saudi Arabia can lead global workforce transformation by showing how technology and people thrive together,” he said.
Tawfiq applies the same principle to finance. “Financial confidence grows from dialogue,” she said. “The more women talk about money, valuations, and investment, the more they’ll see themselves as decision-makers shaping the economy.”
Together, their visions outline a future where leaders are inclusive, data-literate, and AI-confident—a model that may soon define the global standard for workforce transformation under Vision 2030.
