Robohub.org
 

Bruno Maisonnier moves on from Aldebaran


by
23 February 2015



share this:
Pepper-and-Softbank-CEO_800_613_80

Pepper with Softbank Corp President Masayoshi Son.

Farewell and thank you to Bruno Maisonnier, the founder and CEO of Aldebaran Robotics, which is now 95% owned by Softbank. Softbank had previously acquired a majority stake in the ground breaking French robotics company which created the humanoid NAO. Together Aldebaran and Softbank Robotics developed Pepper, the ‘world’s first robot that reads emotions’. Pepper is on display in Softbank and Nestle stores in Japan and there are somewhat delayed plans for Pepper’s sale in the US later in 2015.

Fumihide Tomizawa will become the new Aldebaran CEO effective March 4th. Tomizawa is also President of  Softbank Robotics Corp, with a background in global sales and business development. Tomizawa believes that the strengthened collaboration between the two groups will ‘drive Aldebaran’s growth globally’.

Maisonnier has agreed to sell his remaining shares in Aldebaran, step down as CEO and will become a Special Advisor to Masayoshi Son, the President of Softbank Corp. In a press release from Aldebaran, February 23rd, Maisonnier says that he wants to step back from the day to day operations of growing a robotics company and reflect on the changes that have occurred in the world, analyzing and integrating them back into the world of robotics.

“Fundamental things happened in the world, political, human and technological ones, that need to be analyzed deeply and integrated into the founding bricks of the future robotics area. I need time to think, I have books to write, and people to meet around the world.”

If you liked this article, you may also be interested in:

See all the latest robotics news on Robohub, or sign up for our weekly newsletter.



tags: , , , ,


Andra Keay is the Managing Director of Silicon Valley Robotics, founder of Women in Robotics and is a mentor, investor and advisor to startups, accelerators and think tanks, with a strong interest in commercializing socially positive robotics and AI.
Andra Keay is the Managing Director of Silicon Valley Robotics, founder of Women in Robotics and is a mentor, investor and advisor to startups, accelerators and think tanks, with a strong interest in commercializing socially positive robotics and AI.





Related posts :



Robot Talk Episode 116 – Evolved behaviour for robot teams, with Tanja Kaiser

  04 Apr 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Tanja Katharina Kaiser from the University of Technology Nuremberg about how applying evolutionary principles can help robot teams make better decisions.

Robot Talk Episode 115 – Robot dogs working in industry, with Benjamin Mottis

  28 Mar 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Benjamin Mottis from ANYbotics about deploying their four-legged ANYmal robot in a variety of industries.

Robot Talk Episode 114 – Reducing waste with robotics, with Josie Gotz

  21 Mar 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Josie Gotz from the Manufacturing Technology Centre about robotics for material recovery, reuse and recycling.

Robot Talk Episode 113 – Soft robotic hands, with Kaspar Althoefer

  14 Mar 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Kaspar Althoefer from Queen Mary University of London about soft robotic manipulators for healthcare and manufacturing.

Robot Talk Episode 112 – Getting creative with robotics, with Vali Lalioti

  07 Mar 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Vali Lalioti from the University of the Arts London about how art, culture and robotics interact.

Robot Talk Episode 111 – Robots for climate action, with Patrick Meier

  28 Feb 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Patrick Meier from the Climate Robotics Network about how robots can help scale action on climate change.

Robot Talk Episode 110 – Designing ethical robots, with Catherine Menon

  21 Feb 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Catherine Menon from the University of Hertfordshire about designing home assistance robots with ethics in mind.

Robot Talk Episode 109 – Building robots at home, with Dan Nicholson

  14 Feb 2025
In the latest episode of the Robot Talk podcast, Claire chatted to Dan Nicholson from MakerForge.tech about creating open source robotics projects you can do at home.





Robohub is supported by:




Would you like to learn how to tell impactful stories about your robot or AI system?


scicomm
training the next generation of science communicators in robotics & AI


©2024 - Association for the Understanding of Artificial Intelligence


 












©2021 - ROBOTS Association