The deal, which SoftBank said it hopes to complete by the end of September, has a few steps pending.
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“I proposed to him for the first time in the restaurant”, Son told reporters after announcing the $32 billion takeover.
ARM, the most valuable tech company listed in London, is a major presence in mobile processing, with its processor and graphics technology used by Samsung, Huawei and Apple in their in-house designed microchips.
The disciplined approach has long impressed investors.
Softbank, a technology conglomerate, based in Japan will make use of the Arm’s semiconductor design expertise to enhance its Internet of Things division.
“This £24 billion investment will be the largest ever Asian investment in the UK”.
Among the triggers for what Son has called the next “paradigm shift” in technology are artificial intelligence and the internet of things – a new focus for ARM as it weathers a smartphone slowdown. ARM officials were not reachable outside market hours.
Its offices have none of the funky fittings found at Facebook or Google, and its executives favour business suits over hoodies. “It was a British company that determined the next generation microprocessor architecture”. It manufactures iPhones, chips and other technology that is licensed to other firms. With the mobile phone market slowing, ARM is adding new customers in the automotive industry and targeting growth in processors for network equipment makers and servers.
However, less than half the microchips produced by its design previous year were used in smartphones, the rest were used in domestic appliances requiring processing power, such as televisions and washing machines.
“ARM is the last British [technology] company that has a global reach”, he said.
The deal is Softbank’s largest takeover to date. SoftBank said it intends to retain the current ARM organization including the existing senior management team, brand, and partnership-based business model and culture.
In a leadership campaign speech last week, days before she became PM, Mrs May said she wanted an industrial strategy that “wouldn’t automatically stop the sale of British firms to foreign ones, but (would) be capable of stepping in” to defend sectors of importance to the national economy.
Chancellor Philip Hammond reacts to this news by saying that this is not a loss for the United Kingdom, on the contrary, it shows that United Kingdom is still open for business with worldwide investors: “Britain is open for business – and open to foreign investment”.
“Talking is easy”, said the man ranked by Forbes as Japan’s second richest.
He said the deal offers “a great combination of factors”.
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“I’m proving that with cash”.
