AI's "thirst" sparks an IPO frenzy! SB Energy (SBE.US), backed by SoftBank and OpenAI, applies for a U.S. listing.

SB Energy Corp. (SBE.US), an electricity infrastructure company jointly supported by SoftBank Group Corp. and OpenAI, has officially submitted its initial public offering (IPO) application to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), becoming the latest energy company seeking to go public in response to the surging demand for electricity from AI data centers. According to the prospectus disclosed on Tuesday, the California-based company reported revenue of $139 million in the first half of 2026, with a net loss of $3.2 billion; this is in contrast to the $83 million in revenue and a net loss of $216 million in the same period last year. The significant increase in losses is primarily attributed to upfront capital expenditures and asset impairment charges related to the construction of natural gas power generation projects. SB Energy currently has a portfolio of solar power generation and battery storage assets and is developing a natural gas power plant in Ohio with a capacity of 9.2 gigawatts. This plant will specifically supply power to AI data centers, marking a strategic shift for the company towards digital infrastructure. OpenAI and SoftBank have each committed to invest $500 million in SB Energy for the construction and operation of a 1.2-gigawatt data center in Texas dedicated to OpenAI's use. Additionally, the asset management giant Ares Management Corp. has also participated in the investment in SB Energy. Analyst Kirk Boodry noted in a report in May that this IPO is expected to alleviate market concerns regarding SoftBank's asset valuations and its ability to finance its AI investment plans. He stated, By shifting the capital-intensive data center investment needs to the subsidiary level, SoftBank effectively reduces liquidity pressures at the parent company level. This IPO comes at a time when tech giants are significantly increasing their investments in electricity and infrastructure to advance the construction of AI data centers. Analysts at UBS Group AG anticipate that global investments will reach $511 billion by 2030 to bridge the electricity supply-demand gap, with data centers being the primary driving factor. The co-managers for SB Energy's IPO include JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, and Mizuho Securities. The company expects its common stock to be listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market and the Nasdaq Texas with the stock ticker SBE.