Hyundai to Take Full Control of Boston Dynamics to Scale Humanoid Robotics

Key Facts

In a move reflecting the accelerating global race toward industrial automation, Hyundai Motor Group has announced its intention to acquire SoftBank Group's remaining stake in Boston Dynamics to become its sole owner. The full buyout is designed to streamline decision-making and transition the company from research and development to commercial manufacturing. Through this consolidation, Hyundai aims to accelerate the manufacturing rollout and large-scale deployment of the Atlas humanoid robot across industrial and logistics sectors.

This strategic shift comes amid intensifying competition in the robotics sector, as firms like Tesla with its Optimus robot and OpenAI-backed Figure race to capture a humanoid robot market that Goldman Sachs estimates could reach $38 billion by 2035. For SoftBank, this exit continues its strategy of monetizing non-core assets to focus on AI-centric investments, following its initial sale of a majority stake to Hyundai in 2021 in a deal that valued the robotics firm at approximately $1.1 billion at the time.

Regarding market performance, SoftBank shares (9984.T) closed at 5961 JPY as of July 16, 2026, after reaching a daily high of 6145 JPY.