SoftBank to buy ABB's robotics business in $5.4 billion deal

By John Revill ZURICH (Reuters) -SoftBank Group said on Wednesday it has agreed to buy the robotics business of Swiss engineering group ABB in a $5.4 billion deal. The deal marks a major push by SoftBank founder and CEO Masayoshi Son into robotics as he expands investing activity after a period of retrenchment. SoftBank, whose forays into robotics include the humanoid Pepper, has investments in the segment including in Berkshire Grey and AutoStore. The deal means ABB has abandoned its original decision to spin off and separately list the industrial automation business, which competes with Japan's Fanuc and Yaskawa, as well as Germany's Kuka in making factory robots. The decision is the first major move under ABB CEO Morten Wierod, who took charge last year, and comes after the robots business has struggled with falling profitability and sales in recent years. "ABB and SoftBank share the same perspective that the world is entering a new era of AI-based robotics and believe that the division and SoftBank's robotics offering can best shape this era together," said Wierod in a statement. "ABB Robotics will benefit from the combination of its leading technology and deep industry expertise with SoftBank's state-of-the-art capabilities in AI, robotics and next-generation computing," he added. ABB shares were indicated 3% higher in pre-market activity in Zurich after the sale announcement. SoftBank's shares rose around 1% in afternoon trading following the announcement but were still down 1.57% compared to Tuesday's close. Its shares have surged on a wave of enthusiasm for companies considered beneficiaries of artificial intelligence, more than tripling in the previous six months to hit a record intra-day high of 21,695 yen on Tuesday. The transaction is expected to close in mid-to-late 2026 and generate cash proceeds of roughly $5.3 billion from the divestment, ABB said. It said the money will be used towards its long-term capital allocation principles, which include investing in organic growth, acquisitions and returning capital to shareholders through dividends and share buybacks. The robotics business, which employs 7,000 people, generated sales of $2.3 billion last year, equivalent to 7% of ABB's total revenues, but ABB saw limited crossover with the rest of its business, which is largely focused on electrification and automation. Robotics has struggled with subdued demand in Asia, with companies delaying capital investments due to economic uncertainty. New installations remained largely unchanged at 542,000 units in 2024, according to the International Federation of Robotics. (Reporting by John Revill; Additional reporting by Sam Nussey in Tokyo; Editing by Miranda Murray and Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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