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| SoftBank has stopped producing Pepper robots |
According to reuters, SoftBank is restructuring its robotics business and halting production of Pepper's robots because the company has lowered its industrial ambitions.
Robots are just one of the many companies that have been invested by this great Japanese company. But pepper production can stop forever.
Production of the robot was discontinued last year. Copying is expensive. Pepper was built by Foxconn in China to fill a labor shortage. But he struggled to find a global clientele. Only 27,000 cars were produced.
The drop reflects CEO Masayoshi Son's waning plan to make SoftBank a leader in the robotics industry, making human machines that can provide services and care for customers.
As part of the cost cut, SoftBank plans to lay off about half of its 330 French employees in September.
After SoftBank acquired French robotics company Aldebaran in 2012, France became the birthplace of its robotics business.
Half of the workforce has been laid off from small sales in the US and UK, and the workforce has been redistributed from the robotics business to Japan.
A SoftBank spokesman said dismissal negotiations were continuing in France and the final number had yet to be determined. He confirmed layoffs in the United States and the United Kingdom and the redistribution of Japanese employees.
SoftBank is restructuring its robotics business
The French robotics company said in a statement that SoftBank will continue to invest heavily in the next generation of robots to serve our customers and partners.
Soft founded Pepper Bank in 2014 and became the group's spokesperson, reflecting Sun Zhengyi's optimistic view of a technology-enabled future in setting up offshore investment firms.
Cultural differences between the French company and the Tokyo government in developing robots have hampered its sales, affecting its limited functionality and unreliability.
SoftBank boosted Pepper's sales by placing robots in its mobile stores and focusing on products such as Whiz cleaning robots. French companies are becoming increasingly marginalized.
The group has sold assets, including a controlling stake in robotics company Boston Dynamics, with Sun Zhengyi focusing more on investing through its Vision Fund.
The 63-year-old billionaire described SoftBank as the financier of the information revolution. The company retains some robotics and automation technology, owns SB Logistics, and has interests in robotics companies Berkshire Gray and AutoStore.