SoftBank Robotics Robotics

SoftBank Stops Making Pepper Robots, Will Cut 165 Robotics Jobs in France - IEEE Spectrum

[Reuters is reporting](https://www.reuters.com/technology/exclusive-softbank-shrinks-robotics-business-stops-pepper-production-sources-2021-06-28/) that [SoftBank](https://spectrum.ieee.org/tag/softbank) stopped manufacturing Pepper robots at some point last year due to low demand, and by September, will cut about half of the 330 positions at [SoftBank Robotics](https://spectrum.ieee.org/tag/softbank-robotics) Europe in France. Most of the positions will be in Q&A, sales, and service, which hopefully leaves SoftBank Robotics’ research and development group mostly intact. But the cuts reflect poor long-term sales, with SoftBank [Robotics](https://spectrum.ieee.org/topic/robotics/) Europe having lost over 100 million Euros in the past three years, according to French business news site [JDN](https://www.journaldunet.com/solutions/dsi/1502645-plan-social-chez-l-ex-aldebaran-robotics-createur-des-robots-pepper-et-nao/). [Speaking with Nikkei](https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/SoftBank-stops-making-Pepper-robot-but-says-it-isn-t-dead), SoftBank said that this doesn’t actually mean a permanent end for Pepper, and that they “plan to resume production if demand recovers.”But things aren’t looking good.