SoftBank Eyes $30 Billion Allied Universal Deal to Deepen AI and Robotics Push

1 articles · Updated · Financial Times · Oct 17

$30 billion talks are underway for SoftBank to buy Allied Universal, the world's largest private security group, though people familiar with the matter said negotiations remain early and may not yield a deal.
Masayoshi Son is pursuing Allied to expand SoftBank's robotics strategy, including a long-discussed plan to deploy autonomous robots in security and Allied's role guarding data centers.
The move would add to SoftBank's recent AI bets, including its $5.4 billion agreement for ABB Robotics, its Arm stake and $65 billion invested in OpenAI.
Allied operates in more than 100 countries, employs about 770,000 people and is majority-owned by Warburg Pincus and La Caisse, making any sale a major private-equity exit after years of IPO considerations.
Financing remains a key question as SoftBank's shares are down nearly 40% from June highs and it recently paid up to 9.75% in a record junk-bond sale while seeking as much as $100 billion for an AI buyout fund.