The robot invasion is happening, thanks to three Asian companies and an “emotive” android. Pepper’s makers are investing heavily in bringing the service robot and other products to global markets.

Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Foxconn Technology Group will purchase a 20 percent share in SoftBank Robotics Holdings Corp. worth 14.5 billion yen ($118 million) each. SoftBank Corp. will retain ownership of the remaining 60 percent.

Taiwan-based Foxconn (a.k.a. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co.) is a major Apple Inc. supplier and makes Pepper for SoftBank. China-based Alibaba stands to gain from online sales of the humanoid robot. Japan-based telecom provider SoftBank already owns 32 percent of Alibaba and also owns Sprint Corp.

“As we enter the data technology era, robotics will become a critical field that catalyzes technological breakthroughs in numerous sectors such as healthcare, public services, research, and at home,” said Jack Ma, Alibaba Group founder and executive chairman, in a statement. “Our partnership with SoftBank and Foxconn combines the best hardware and software talent in the industry to pave the way for robotics research and development.”

Robot can read and display emotions
Pepper has a humanoid torso, head, and arms and a wheeled base. It is four feet tall and weighs about 62 lb. Pepper avoids the “uncanny valley” with a cartoonish face, but its arms and hands move smoothly, thanks to 20 motors and multiple points of articulation.

SoftBank claims that Pepper can read human emotions by recognizing facial expressions and vocabulary (through voice-recognition) and then react accordingly. It can autonomously generate its own emotions in response to data gathered from cameras, touch sensors, 3-D sensors, and an accelerometer, as modeled by its “endocrine-type, multi-layer neural network.”

“Foxconn is pleased to be partnering with SoftBank and Alibaba as part of our effort to drive the advancement of robotics engineering,” said Foxconn founder Terry Gou. “This is a strategic area of focus for our company as we continue to advance our capabilities in intelligent manufacturing and realize our Industry 4.0 vision.”

Pepper apps and pricing
About 200 apps will be available at launch, including a diary of how Pepper feels about daily household events. By spending more time with Pepper, users can obtain apps known as “cocorugumi.”

On June 20, 1,000 Pepper units will be available for purchase in Japan. The household robot costs 198,000 yen (about $1,600). However, owners must also make insurance payments of 9,800 yen ($206) per month for three years. In addition, there is monthly cloud connection fee of 14,800 yen ($120), enabling Pepper to communicate with other robots. It won’t share private data.

SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son said that Pepper will be sold below manufacturing cost, with the expectation that apps will generate profit as they have for Apple and the iPhone. The first 300 units have been offered to developers.

France-based Aldebaran Robotics SA, a joint developer of Pepper and a SoftBank subsidiary, will offer a beta program for Pepper apps next month.

Pepper can be rented for 1,500 yen ($12) per hour, and SoftBank is already using it to sell phones at its stores. Mizuho Financial Group Inc. plans to use Pepper as a concierge in some bank branches.

Household robots as common as cars?
A report from BI Intelligence predicts that the market for consumer and business robots will grow to $1.5 billion by 2019. SoftBank plans to sell Pepper in the U.S., and while Alibaba will help with access to China, that large market is mostly industrial right now. Alibaba is reportedly following the country’s “Made in China 2025” strategy.

Robots will eventually be as common as automobiles in daily life and “will be a part of the family,” said Ma. “We will aim to be the No.1 robotics company.” Alibaba also has a partnership with Google Inc. to compete with Amazon and possibly develop a robotic operating system.

In addition, Alibaba and Foxconn are reportedly in talks to invest about $500 million in Snapdeal, which could raise the India-based online retailer’s value to $5 billion. The government and investors in Japan are also hoping that robotics can also boost that nation’s economy and help it catch up with China and North Korea.

SoftBank intends to announce its “Pepper for Biz” plans at its SoftBank World 2015 event in July. Nestle SA plans to use 20 units to sell Nescafe coffee machines in its Japanese stores. The robot could be available worldwide sometime in the coming year. SoftBank’s Asratec was also developing the Asra C1 modular humanoid robot and V-Sidio operating system.

“Pepper will be the first step,” said Son. “We started in Japan, but we will make this into a global business.”