[SoftBank Prepares to Manufacture Batteries for AI Data Centers] According to a report by Jinse Finance, earlier this week, Bloomberg cited sources familiar with the matter stating that the mobile communications division of Japan's SoftBank Group plans to convert part of its factory in Osaka, Japan, into a large-scale battery production line to power its own artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. The company aims to bring production online within the next five years, with the battery project set to be announced by CEO Junichi Miyakawa in May. The plan is to develop a factory with a total battery capacity of several gigawatt-hours (GWh), which will become one of the largest battery factories in Japan. Initially, these batteries will be used to support its own AI data centers, and later they will be supplied to other Japanese companies. After SoftBank executives considered various uses for the factory in Sakai City, including robotics manufacturing, they decided to venture into the energy sector.