Japanese tech giant SoftBank on Thursday announced that it has bought Boston Dynamics, a company that makes humanoid robots, from Alphabet. SoftBank is also acquiring Schaft, another Alphabet robotics company. Terms of the deal weren't disclosed.

Alphabet reportedly had been trying to sell Boston Dynamics for at least a year.

Alphabet continues to commercialize its artificial intelligence technology in software and as well as hardware like the Google Home.

Google acquired Boston Dynamics in 2013. In the past years the company has occasionally shared YouTube videos demonstrating the capabilities of its latest creations, often leading to memes and discussion of societal implications. Boston Dynamics robots were used in the DARPA Robotics Challenge in 2015.

Google bought Schaft in 2013.

"Today, there are many issues we still cannot solve by ourselves with human capabilities," SoftBank CEO Masayoshi Son said in a statement.

"Smart robotics are going to be a key driver of the next stage of the Information Revolution, and Marc and his team at Boston Dynamics are the clear technology leaders in advanced dynamic robots. I am thrilled to welcome them to the SoftBank family and look forward to supporting them as they continue to advance the field of robotics and explore applications that can help make life easier, safer and more fulfilling."

SoftBank has been raising money for a $100 billion fund to back companies.