Aldebaran, the France-based robot maker backed by Intel Capital, the corporate venturing unit of the eponymous chipmaker, has seen Japan-based conglomerate Softbank buy a stake in the company from existing shareholders for more than $100m.
Softbank acquired an 80% stake in the company, and will invest a further $40m to $50m on development, UK news provider Financial Times said yesterday. Advisory boutique Arma Partners advised investors CDC Innovation, Crédit Agricole Private Equity and I-Source on the sale of their stake in Aldebaran to SoftBank.
Intel Capital led a $13m series C round into Aldebaran Robotics last year, in Intel’s first investment in the robotics industry. Other French investors CDC Innovation, iSource and Crédit Agricole Private Equity, also took part in the C round having previously provided more than $7.3m since 2007.
Arvind Sodhani, president of Intel Capital, said at the time of the series C round: "Aldebaran’s work in areas such as voice interaction and video analytics really highlights the advances made in robotics and computing. Robotics has long been an area of interest because it leverages the power of computing to enrich lives of humans."
Go4Venture Advisers acted as exclusive financial adviser to Aldebaran Robotics and its management.