Masayoshi Son told investors Monday that he had not given enough weight to their opinions or those of the company’s board members, according to sources who attended his Monday presentation in New York, which was closed to media. (Reuters)

Talking point: Son has been cornered into defending his track record of big-cheque investments—which have seen some big misses, chiefly WeWork’s failure—amid pressure from activist investor Elliott Management to improve its governance and transparency, buy back its stock and make fewer private-company investments until it gets outside capital for its second Vision Fund. Son signalled a willingness to adhere to some of these demands, including buybacks and more independent directors. He also predicted a positive future for SoftBank’s funds, noting that up to 15 per cent of the Vision Fund’s portfolio may fail; 15 per cent could be big wins; and the remainder “passable” investments. Son reportedly expressed regret for overpaying for WeWork’s stock, but told investors to “expect great things” from its parent, The We Company, under its new CEO. He also said SoftBank would stop investing in companies that compete with one another in the same market, as it has done with ride-hailing (Uber, Rappi and China’s DiDi Chuxing) and food delivery (Uber Eats, DoorDash).