SoftBank weighs $18 billion acquisition of Allied Universal, source says (updated)
UPDATE 1-SoftBank weighs $18 billion acquisition of Allied Universal, source says Changes sourcing throughout, updates last paragraph
By Milana Vinn
Oct 16 (Reuters) - SoftBank Group 9984.T is considering an acquisition of Allied Universal in a deal that could value the US security services provider at about $18 billion, a source familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Allied Universal provides security staffing for businesses, venues and major events, and has a growing presence in the data center industry, supporting both development and operation of facilities
The potential acquisition would complement SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son's increasing focus on AI, as he is exploring the use of AI-powered robots across industries, and looking to strengthen the infrastructure needed to support the technology
With Allied, SoftBank would look to eventually replace some staff with robots for certain security tasks, though the deployment of humanoid security workers is likely to take longer.
Deliberations are preliminary and no final decisions have been made, including on the potential price, Bloomberg News first reported the news
SoftBank declined to comment on the report, while Allied Universal did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment
SoftBank is widely known for making large technology investments through its Vision Fund. It was an early investor in Alibaba, owns a majority stake in Arm, and was a major backer of the office-sharing startup WeWork
The deal builds on SoftBank's broader push into robotics and automation, following its agreement last year to acquire swiss engineering group ABB's robotics business for $5.4 billion
(Reporting by Apratim Sarkar in Bengaluru and Milana Vinn in New York; Editing by Shilpi Majumdar and Anil D'Silva)
((Apratim.Sarkar@thomsonreuters.com;))
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SoftBank weighs $18 billion acquisition of Allied Universal, source says (updated)