Pepper was the best-known product of Aldebaran, which was owned by SoftBank and URG. Supply: Aldebaran
Aldebaran, the producer of the Nao and Pepper humanoid robots, reportedly filed for chapter in mid-February and has laid off a lot of its employees because it seems to be for an additional purchaser. The robots have been well-known in instructional and repair functions.
Bruno Maisonnier based Aldebaran in 2005. Its bipedal Nao and wheeled Pepper robots have been designed with curved white surfaces and have been shorter than adults to be non-threatening. Pepper had a pill display on its chest and had audio system for human-machine interplay.
A judicial panel yesterday put Paris-based Aldebaran in receivership. Whereas a number of commenters expressed dismay on LinkedIn, the firm‘s newest monetary struggles got here as no shock.
“For 2 or three months, workers have identified that [the compulsory liquidation] could be inevitable,” a authorized consultant of the corporate advised the French press.
Now accepting session submissions!
Aldebaran was a robotics ambassador
Nao, Aldebaran’s first system, changed Honda’s Asimo within the annual RoboCup soccer tournaments. The corporate launched the primary model of Pepper in 2014.
Aldebaran’s Romeo mannequin was supposed to be a analysis platform towards family functions — a notoriously tough market to crack — however it was not as widespread as the opposite fashions. Pepper and Nao have been additionally restricted in functionality and robustness for industrial functions.
As compared, right this moment’s humanoids have higher stability and autonomous navigation, have begun to govern objects, and might work together with folks extra naturally due to latest advances in generative AI. However for a few years, Pepper and Nao have been ambassadors of robotics to most of the people.
In 2015, solely 15% of corporations deliberate to resume their three-year contracts for Pepper. The robotic value $30,000 within the U.S. or $2,000 with a $550 per 30 days subscription price for upkeep and software program updates.
The corporate stated it had bought about 20,000 Nao robots and 17,000 Pepper humanoids to 70 international locations, however it stopped producing Pepper in 2020 or 2021.
From left: the Pepper, Nao, and Plato robots. Supply: Aldebaran
SoftBank and URG a part of possession saga
Aldebaran isn’t the one humanoid robotics developer to alter possession — Boston Dynamics has been owned by Google, SoftBank, and Hyundai — however it by no means achieved the dimensions buyers hoped for.
In 2012, SoftBank Group, which has invested in quite a few robotics corporations, acquired Aldebaran for $100 million. In 2016, Tokyo-based SoftBank rebranded the unit as a part of its SoftBank Robotics Group, with services within the Europe, Asia, and the U.S.
SoftBank put Pepper robots in HSBC Banks to enhance customer support, however a number of business observers questioned on the time whether or not the humanoid had been rushed into manufacturing. HSBC’s regulatory troubles additionally didn’t assist.
In 2018, Haier partnered with SoftBank Robotics to construct a model of Pepper for its Sensible Dwelling platform and retailers in China.
In 2022, Bochum, Germany-based United Robotics Group (URG), based by Thomas Hähn in 2019, acquired SoftBank Robotics Europe after months of negotiations. HAHN Automation had acquired collaborative robotic pioneer Rethink Robotics after its personal struggles in 2018 and relaunched it final 12 months.
SoftBank Robotics Europe had already laid off practically half its employees of 330 folks on the time of the URG buy. SoftBank stated that the Whiz cleansing robotic was its flagship system.
URG had been the first distributor of Nao and Pepper in Europe since 2021. It then launched the Plato hospitality “cobiot,” which value $800 a month to lease. URG additionally rebranded SoftBank Robotics Europe again to Aldebaran.
In 2024, URG stopped funding Aldebaran, which recorded an working lack of about $29 million. Aldebaran laid off extra staffers. The corporate not too long ago fielded curiosity from two potential patrons, however the offers fell by way of, resulting in the receivership proceedings.
Aldebaran remains to be searching for patrons, however the destiny of its remaining employees and mental property is unclear. The Robotic Report will proceed following and sharing its story.
