SoftBank to buy ABB robotics unit for $5.4 billion in AI push

SoftBank Group on Monday said it had agreed to buy the robotics division of Swiss engineering firm ABB for $5.4 billion, as the Japanese giant looks to bolster its artificial intelligence plays.

The deal, which is subject to regulatory approval globally, means ABB will no longer look to spin off its robotics business as a separately listed company.

“SoftBank’s next frontier is Physical AI. Together with ABB Robotics, we will unite world-class technology and talent under our shared vision to fuse Artificial Super Intelligence and robotics — driving a groundbreaking evolution that will propel humanity forward,” Masayoshi Son, founder of SoftBank, said in a statement.

Artificial Super Intelligence, or ASI, is Son’s idea of AI that is 10,000 times smarter than humans.

Son has looked to position SoftBank at the center of the potential AI boom through investments and acquisitions in different areas of technology. SoftBank owns chip designer Arm, for example, and has a major stake in OpenAI.

SoftBank already has some robot-related investments, including AutoStore Holdings and Agile Robots.

The Japanese conglomerate is not new to robotics. In 2012, SoftBank took a majority stake in a French company called Aldebaran. Two years later, the two companies launched a humanoid robot called Pepper — a bet that ultimately flopped, but robotics has now re-emerged as a key focus for the Japanese giant.

Morten Wierod, who became CEO of ABB in August 2024, has pushed the spin-off of the company’s robotics unit as a strategic move.

ABB said in a statement that the sale “will create immediate value to ABB shareholders.” The company said it will use the proceeds from the transaction “in line with its well-established capital allocation principles.”

ABB said it expected cash proceeds of approximately $5.3 billion. The expected separation cost is around $200 million, about half of which is already in ABB’s 2025 guidance.