Blackstone, the world’s largest alternative asset manager, is making a big investment in Futronic, a 33-year-old automotive supplier whose motion-control technology has been adapted for industrial and humanoid robots, according to Reuters.

The deal values the South Korean firm at about 1 trillion won ($676.04 million), according to a person with knowledge of the matter. -RTRS 

The deal comes just ahead of the expected rise of physical AI, with forecasts from top desks indicating that global robot deliveries could begin ramping up later this year before accelerating more materially in 2027.

A recent Deutsche Bank report shows that global shipments are poised to surge.

Latest coverage:

• Mitsubishi Motors Joins Physical AI Race With Humanoid Robot Production Deal
• “Just The Beginning”: Japan Buys Billions In Nvidia Rubin Chips To Power Humanoid Robots

We previously provided readers with the report “Current State Of Physical AI: Everything You Need To Know,” offering a way to gain exposure to the industrial automation and humanoid robotics space. Read the full note here.

To sum up, the Blackstone deal suggests that the asset manager is positioning for the rise of physical AI, aiming to capture alpha through the company that produces actuators, motors, sensors, controllers, and other mechatronic systems.