From Bloomberg, June 30/July 1:
Schneider to Buy Industrial AI Firm Cognite for $3.1 Billion
Schneider Electric SE agreed to buy Cognite in a $3.1 billion all-cash deal to expand its industrial data and AI software operations.
Schneider will acquire all of privately held Cognite’s share capital from Norway’s Aker ASA and other investors, according to a Schneider Electr: Schneider Electric announces agreement to acquire Cognite. The French maker of energy-management equipment plans to combine Cognite with Aveva, its own industrial software business.
“We’ve been after it for many years, because it complements us so well,” Caspar Herzberg, who heads Aveva, said Wednesday on a call with analysts.
Schneider’s move comes as European manufacturers increasingly implement AI across their factories to improve efficiency and streamline processes. Rivals like Siemens AG are also pushing further into automation and artificial intelligence for the shop floor.
Read more: AI for Industry Is Europe’s Hope to Salvage Manufacturing Edge
While the price of the deal “raises questions,” it fits Schneider’s overall strategy, said Bernstein analyst Alasdair Leslie.
Schneider shares declined as much as 1.8% in Paris. The stock is still up over a quarter in the last year as investors bet on firms that produce the infrastructure around the AI boom. Schneider is increasingly providing energy and cooling services to data centers, which in turn provide the computing power and data storage necessary for the AI buildout.
The company is France’s fourth largest by value, with a market capitalization of about €165 billion ($188 billion).
Aker, an industrial investment company that helped establish Cognite in 2017 and scale up the firm, estimates its cash proceeds from the transaction, including the settlement of an outstanding convertible loan, will amount to about $1.48 billion.
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