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SoftBank’s data center subsidiary SB Energy has hit the brakes on what was supposed to be one of the largest IPOs of 2026, pushing back its listing from September to at least mid-to-late October. The culprit: investors aren’t buying the $50 billion price tag for a company that hasn’t actually turned on a single data center yet.
The company filed its S-1 registration statement with the SEC on September 1, seeking to list on Nasdaq under the ticker SBE and raise between $5 billion and $7 billion while keeping SoftBank as majority owner.
A $439 billion backlog, $139 million in revenue
SB Energy’s pitch to investors rests on a genuinely staggering figure: approximately $439 billion in contracted backlog, largely built on long-term lease agreements. The company has locked in 8.8 GW of contracted data center capacity, positioning itself as a major player in the AI infrastructure buildout that every tech giant is racing to complete.
The problem is that almost none of this has translated into actual money coming in the door. SB Energy generated just $139 million in revenue during the first half of 2026. For context, the company is asking investors to value it at roughly 360 times its annualized revenue run rate.
Meanwhile, the company posted a net loss of $3.21 billion over the same six-month period, driven primarily by its legacy renewable energy operations. Capital expenditure requirements going forward are projected to exceed $170 billion.
The OpenAI dependency problem
Dig into that $439 billion backlog and you’ll find one name dominating the list: OpenAI. The Sam Altman-led AI company is the primary source of SB Energy’s contracted revenue through long-term data center leases. That’s both the company’s greatest selling point and its most obvious vulnerability.
OpenAI’s own IPO timeline remains uncertain, and if that offering encounters turbulence, SB Energy’s financial projections could wobble in tandem.
SB Energy does have other notable backers. Nvidia has committed $1.5 billion and up to $105 billion in guarantees for a data center project in Ohio.
Cooling enthusiasm for AI infrastructure plays
For SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son, who has positioned the company’s entire strategic vision around AI dominance, the delay is an uncomfortable signal. SoftBank’s $100 billion Stargate commitment with OpenAI, Oracle, and others was meant to cement its role as the backbone of AI computing infrastructure. SB Energy’s IPO was supposed to validate that thesis with public market capital.
The rescheduling to mid-to-late October gives SB Energy’s bankers a few extra weeks to court investors, potentially at a revised valuation.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
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