Credit: AI generated image
Tech investment giant SoftBank Group said Wednesday it will acquire Swiss-Swedish company ABB Robotics for about $5.4 billion as part of its plan to bring artificial intelligence into the physical realm.
ABB Robotics specializes in industrial robots, including large robot arms that perform precise movements in factories.
Japan’s SoftBank, a major investor in ChatGPT developer OpenAI, said the acquisition is part of its AI-focused business strategy.
SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said in a statement, “SoftBank’s next frontier is physical AI.”
“With a shared vision of combining super artificial intelligence and robotics, we are bringing together world-class technology and talent to drive breakthrough advances that move humanity forward.”
ABB Group issued a separate statement announcing an agreement to sell its robotics division to SoftBank for $5.37 billion.
The acquisition combines “ABB Robotics’ cutting-edge technology and industry expertise with SoftBank’s leading capabilities in AI, robotics and next-generation computing,” the company said.
The transaction is expected to close in mid-to-late 2026, pending regulatory approval.
ABB Robotics has approximately 7,000 employees and had sales of $2.3 billion in 2024, representing approximately 7% of ABB Group’s total revenue.
ABB Group had previously planned to spin off its robotics business as an independent listed company.
SoftBank has pledged at least $100 billion to President Donald Trump’s Stargate project to build AI infrastructure in the United States.
Meanwhile, in September, China’s Alibaba announced that it would partner with US semiconductor giant Nvidia on AI technology to accelerate the development of humanoid robots.
© 2025 AFP
Quote: Softbank buys $5.4 billion robotics company to power ‘physical AI’ (October 8, 2025) Retrieved October 9, 2025 from https://techxplore.com/news/2025-10-softbank-buys-bn-robotics-firm.html
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