TOKYO, June 9 (Xinhua) -- Japan's SoftBank Group Corp. said on Friday that it will acquire two robotics companies from Google's parent company Alphabet Inc. in an effort to boost its robots research and development capabilities.
The Japanese technology giant said that it would acquire U.S.-based Boston Dynamics and Tokyo-based Schaft, both of which design and manufacture robots that could simulate human movement.
"Smart robotics are going to be a key driver of the next stage of the information revolution," SoftBank Group Chairman Masayoshi Son said in a statement on Friday.
He added that SoftBank will support Boston Dynamics in advancing the field of robotics and exploring applications that can help make life easier, safer and more fulfilling.
Boston Dynamics, founded in 1992, has been known for developing some of the world's most advanced robots, including a four-legged robot "dog" that can jump, run, climb stairs, get back up if it falls, and perform human tasks such as house work.
Schaft was founded in a laboratory at the University of Tokyo in 2012 and mainly develops bipedal robots.
The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
