Sandra Theres DonyPanasonic is all set to buy Blue Yonder, an AI supply chain software firm based in the United States of America. The purchase will be for $7.1 billion. An announcement concerning the purchase was made by the Japanese company on Friday.
The Deal
Panasonic already had a 20% hold in the shares of the firm from July 2020. With the deal, the company will become a completely owned subsidiary of the Japanese company.
Once it has attained regulatory approval, the deal will be on the list of one of the biggest acquisitions in the history of Panasonic. Blue Yonder is a firm with a wide and extended consumer chain worldwide that includes multinational companies. Walmart, Coco-Cola, and FedEx to name a few.
As per a statement by Panasonic,
“The need for more intelligent, autonomous, and edge-aware supply chains has been dramatically heightened by the Covid-19 pandemic.”
The company also added that the lockdowns acted as catalysts leading to “drastic shifts in supply-demand.”
This has been a major reason that led to the acquisition of the Arizona-based firm. The merger will be of substantial help to Panasonic helping it to gain adequate knowledge and expertise in artificial intelligence technology that will facilitate the reduction of wastage in supply chains and to optimize production.