The SoftBank Group Announces “Patching as a Service” Cybersecurity Solution Powered by OpenAI to Secure Critical Infrastructure in Japan

The SoftBank Group (SoftBank Group Corp., SoftBank Corp. and SB OAI Japan GK) announced the launch of “Patching as a Service,” a cybersecurity solution that applies OpenAI’s advanced AI capabilities designed to support enterprise cybersecurity vulnerability assessment and remediation planning. Combining OpenAI’s technologies provided by SB OAI Japan with SoftBank Corp.’s operational knowhow, Patching as a Service is a solution that supports clients with vulnerability assessments through remediation planning and implementation advisory, and will be offered in Japan through SB OAI Japan GK. SoftBank Corp. will progressively begin outreach to selected eligible companies supporting Japan's critical infrastructure to accept applications for vulnerability assessments.

As malicious actors increasingly use AI to automate and scale cyberattacks, the threats facing systems that support critical infrastructure have become more severe than ever. As cyberattack methods get increasingly sophisticated and automated, vulnerabilities can be exploited to launch attacks that may result in system outages, data breaches and service interruptions, posing substantial risks to both business continuity and society. While AI models support a range of cybersecurity workflows, expert cybersecurity teams play a critical role in vulnerability assessment, prioritization and remediation planning. Accordingly, in today’s market environment, where AI model capabilities continue to evolve rapidly, organizations face the growing challenge of continuously identifying potential vulnerabilities and considering appropriate remedial measures. The difficulty associated with these security tasks has become greater than ever.

SoftBank Corp. carried out a large-scale internal vulnerability assessment across its internal systems using OpenAI's cybersecurity technologies and observed promising results in identifying potential vulnerabilities. SoftBank Corp.’s cybersecurity team also gained operational experience through this internal initiative and those learnings will be applied to the rollout of Patching as a Service.

Masayoshi Son, Chairman & CEO of SoftBank Group Corp., said: “Attempted cyberattacks powered by advanced AI will become widespread. We're determined to defend against them by using state-of-the-art AI.”

Junichi Miyakawa, President & CEO of SoftBank Corp., said: “Leveraging the practical expertise we've acquired through our use of OpenAI's cybersecurity technologies, we’ll confront the increasingly sophisticated cyber threats targeting Japan's critical infrastructure.”

Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, said: “AI is transforming cybersecurity, and we’re focused on building durable programs that help it accelerate defenders. We’re excited to work with SoftBank to deliver the transformational benefits of our cyber models to more organizations in Japan and strengthen the systems all of us rely on.”