Yossi Cohen appointed strategic advisor at SoftBank as fund pivots toward AI

Yossi Cohen, the former director of Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency, has been elevated to strategic advisor at SoftBank, placing him closer to the organization’s top decision-making levels and to founder Masayoshi Son personally. The appointment, first reported by Israeli business publication Globes, marks a significant upgrade from Cohen’s previous role heading SoftBank’s Israeli operations.

Cohen originally joined the Japanese investment giant in July 2021, working within the framework of Vision Fund 2 to scout and manage investments in Israeli tech companies. His new position expands his remit well beyond Israel, with a focus on artificial intelligence, data centers, cloud processing, and semiconductor investments.

A track record built on cybersecurity wins

Cohen’s promotion didn’t come out of nowhere. During his time leading Israeli operations, he oversaw Vision Fund investments in several notable cybersecurity firms, generating substantial returns.

The most eye-catching: Wiz. SoftBank invested in the cybersecurity company at a $12 billion valuation, and the firm subsequently reached a $32 billion valuation. Cohen reportedly delivered several hundred million shekels in profit from those Wiz investments alone.

A five-year stint running one of the world’s most sophisticated intelligence agencies (2016 to 2021) tends to sharpen one’s ability to assess technology with national security implications, exactly the kind of technology that commands premium valuations in today’s market.

SoftBank’s AI-first pivot

Cohen’s new role fits neatly into a broader strategic transformation at SoftBank. The company has been making direct investments in AI enablers, with positions in OpenAI and ARM representing the core of that thesis.

The numbers suggest the strategy is working. SoftBank recorded an $8.2 billion profit from an Intel investment in Q2 2026. The Vision Fund also saw a $1.7 billion valuation increase during the same quarter, driven by performance in ByteDance and OpenAI-related holdings.

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