FAST NEWS: SoftBank cuts SenseTime holding for seventh time in past year

March 6, 2024

0020.HK

Of China’s top four AI companies, SenseTime is distinguished from its three biggest rivals by its prowess in computer vision artificial intelligence (AI) and its “AI-as-a-Service” to government and enterprise customers for applications like smart cities, surveillance and autonomous driving.

The latest: Japan’s Softbank Group (9984.T) disclosed it sold 32.08 million shares of China’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) company SenseTime Group Inc. (0020.HK) at an average price of HK$0.9314 per share on Feb. 28, according to a new Hong Kong Stock Exchange filing.

Looking up: After the reduction, Softbank still holds 8.96% of SenseTime’s shares, maintaining its position as the company’s second largest shareholder.

Take Note: Softbank has reduced its SenseTime stake by more than 330 million shares through seven share sales over the last year, dropping its holdings from 15.51% to 8.96%.

Digging Deeper: Of China’s top four AI companies, SenseTime is distinguished from its three biggest rivals by its prowess in computer vision artificial intelligence (AI) and its “AI-as-a-Service” to government and enterprise customers for applications like smart cities, surveillance and autonomous driving. Listed in December 2021, the company has been unprofitable since its inception in 2014 due to huge R&D expenses. Last December, its founder and executive director Tang Xiao’ou passed away at the age of 55 after failing to receive treatment for an illness.

Market Reaction: SenseTime’s shares rose on Wednesday morning and were up 2.4% to HK$0.85 by the midday break. It now trades at the lower end of its 52-week range.

Translation by A. Au

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