Original title:SoftbankThe robotics business has laid off employees around the world, and production of the humanoid robot Pepper has been discontinued Source: Sina Technology
According to reports, people familiar with the matter said today that the SoftBank Group is scaling down its global robot business. While layoffs are being made, the humanoid robot Pepper has also been discontinued.Three people familiar with the matter said “Pepper,” which was touted as the first humanoid robot with a “heart,” was discontinued last year. Two people familiar with the matter said that it is unlikely that Pepper will be reproduced because restarting production will be very expensive.
The Pepper robot is contracted by Foxconn to help fill the labor shortage. However, according to people familiar with the matter, the market demand for Pepper is small, and only about 27,000 units have been produced so far.
According to industry insiders, SoftBank's move means that the company's CEO Masayoshi Son (Masayoshi Son)'s plan to “make SoftBank a leader in the robotics industry” is fading.
Just last week,HYUNDAIThe Group, Boston Dynamics, and SoftBank Group announced that Hyundai Group has completed the acquisition of Boston Power. After the transaction was completed, Hyundai held 80% of Boston Dynamics's shares, and SoftBank retained the remaining 20% through an affiliated company.
“Boston Dynamics” is a robotics company that divested from MIT in 1992 and was sold in 2013GoogleAcquired and sold to SoftBank in 2017. Some analysts have previously said that selling “Boston Dynamics” means that SoftBank's ambitions in the field of robotics are fading, and that its robotics business (including Pepper) is becoming more and more isolated. Today, SoftBank is increasingly focused on investing.
Four people familiar with the matter said that as part of layoffs in the robotics department, SoftBank plans to cut about 50% of its 330 employees in France in September. These employees are mainly from Aldebaran, a French robotics company acquired by SoftBank in 2012.
Three people familiar with the matter said that SoftBank's robot sales business in the US and UK is small, and has already cut half of its employees. Furthermore, employees in Japan's robotics business have been redeployed.
In response, a SoftBank spokesperson said that in France, negotiations on layoffs are ongoing, and the final figures have yet to be determined. Employees in the US and UK have also been laid off, and Japanese employees have been redeployed.