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Hitachi Completes Acquisition of MA micro automation of Germany, a Leading Provider of Robotic and Automation Technology

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MA micro automation will be under operation of JR Automation.
The acquisition expands JR Automation’s reach into global automation markets in medical, advanced battery and other fields.

HOLLAND, Mich., Sept. 30, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Hitachi Ltd. (TSE: 6501, “Hitachi”) has completed the acquisition of MA micro automation GmbH (“MA micro automation”, headquartered in St. Leon-Rot, Germany), a leading provider of robotic and automation technology. MA micro automation will be under operation of JR Automation Technologies, LLC (“JR Automation”) to grow the company’s reach in the global advanced automation market, such as Europe, North America, and Southeast Asia. Hitachi and MAX Management GmbH (the seller, a subsidiary of MAX Automation SE) signed a stock purchase agreement in April, 2024, and pursuant to this agreement finalized the deal on September 30, 2024. Both JR Automation and MA micro automation have strong, recognized brands and will continue to do business under their existing names.

“MA micro automation’s capabilities are a perfect complement to JR Automation’s plans for growth in the medical segment,” said Dave DeGraaf, CEO at JR Automation. “We have been impressed not only by their solutions and R&D capabilities, but also by their strong culture and shared values.”

The acquisition of MA micro automation adds value for customers worldwide with diversified offerings in medical and high-precision automation. The deal also expands sales opportunities for JR Automation in Europe and for MA micro automation in the U.S. as well as business portfolio for the Asia Pacific market with a stronger presence in Singapore.

“This collaboration is poised to deliver increased value and support to our customers worldwide, particularly in the medical market vertical where MA micro automation has established a strong foothold,” said Joachim Hardt, CEO at MA micro automation.

The field of robotic SI, which involves a massive amount of data, is playing a central role in connecting shop floor and top floor to achieve overall optimization. With this acquisition of MA micro automation, Hitachi is globally expanding and strengthening its capabilities in the robotic SI field and develop “Total Seamless Solution*1” that solve issues between shop floor and top floor to create new value. “By welcoming new colleagues, Hitachi Group aims to be a global leader in the robotic SI business, and strive to increase the productivity of frontline workers and maximize customers’ corporate value by utilizing the strength in IT, OT (Operational Technology) and products through Lumada*2’s customer co-creation framework,” said Kazunobu Morita, Vice President and Executive Officer, CEO of Industrial Digital Business Unit, Hitachi, Ltd.

With the deal closed, JR Automation and MA micro automation are carrying out post-merger integration plans and reaching out to key stakeholders including customers and suppliers. The companies are also planning a celebration at MA micro automation’s headquarters in Germany on October 22.

*1 “Total Seamless Solution” is a registered trademark of Hitachi, Ltd. in the U.S., and Japan.
*2 Lumada: A collective term for solutions, services and technologies based on Hitachi’s advanced digital technologies for creating value from customers’ data accelerating digital innovation. https://www.hitachi.com/products/it/lumada/global/en/index.html

About MA micro automation
Founded in 2003, MA micro automation is headquartered in St. Leon-Rot, Germany and has locations in Singapore and the U.S. The company employs about 200 people and specializes in automation equipment and specialty machines for the medical industry. Examples include production and testing systems for contact lenses, diagnostic consumables, insulin pens, auto-injectors and several other medical devices. More at https://www.micro-automation.de/en/

About JR Automation
Established in 1980, JR Automation is a leading provider of intelligent automated manufacturing technology solutions that solve customers’ key operational and productivity challenges. JR Automation serves customers across the globe in a variety of industries, including automotive, life sciences, aerospace, and more. 

In 2019, JR Automation was acquired by Hitachi, Ltd. in a strategic effort towards offering a seamless connection between the physical and cyber space for industrial manufacturers and distributors worldwide. With this partnership, JR Automation provides customers a single-source solution for complete integration of their physical assets and data information, offering greater speed, flexibility, and efficiencies towards achieving their Industry 4.0 visions. JR Automation employs over 2,000 people at 21 manufacturing facilities in North America, Europe, and Asia. For more information, please visit https://www.jrautomation.com.

About Hitachi, Ltd.
Hitachi drives Social Innovation Business, creating a sustainable society through the use of data and technology. We solve customers’ and society’s challenges with Lumada solutions leveraging IT, OT (Operational Technology) and products. Hitachi operates under the 3 business sectors of “Digital Systems & Services” – supporting our customers’ digital transformation; “Green Energy & Mobility” – contributing to a decarbonized society through energy and railway systems, and “Connective Industries” – connecting products through digital technology to provide solutions in various industries. Driven by Digital, Green, and Innovation, we aim for growth through co-creation with our customers. The company’s revenues as 3 sectors for fiscal year 2023 (ended March 31, 2024) totaled 8,564.3 billion yen, with 573 consolidated subsidiaries and approximately 270,000 employees worldwide. For more information on Hitachi, please visit the company’s website at https://www.hitachi.com.

 

SOURCE JR Automation

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Shoplazza Launches the World’s First AI-Native Commerce Operating System with a Unified Suite of AI Agents

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TORONTO, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Shoplazza, a leading global commerce platform, announced the launch of the world’s first AI native commerce operating system recently, along with a unified suite of AI agents designed to execute across the entire ecommerce lifecycle. The release marks a major step forward in the company’s evolution from a traditional software platform to an AI-driven commerce infrastructure built for global scale.

At the core of the system is Shoplazza AI Store Builder, an intelligent agent that fundamentally changes how online stores are created. Instead of configuring tools manually, merchants can now generate fully functional, ready to sell storefronts through simple natural language input. By interpreting product information, target markets, and customer profiles, the system automatically builds site architecture, generates localized content, and provides initial go to market recommendations. What once required weeks of setup can now be completed in minutes, with a complete store and launch ready foundation.

Shoplazza also introduced LazzaStudio, an AI powered visual creation agent that streamlines how merchants produce content at scale. From product imagery to marketing creatives and campaign visuals, LazzaStudio transforms traditionally complex production workflows into a prompt driven process. With built in brand learning capabilities, the system generates consistent, high quality assets tailored for global audiences, enabling merchants to deploy content seamlessly across storefronts and advertising channels while significantly reducing production time and cost.

To complete the growth loop, Shoplazza launched AdValet, an AI advertising agent that automates campaign execution end to end. AdValet translates product data and market signals into audience targeting, creative generation, media planning, and campaign deployment. During live campaigns, it continuously monitors performance and dynamically optimizes outcomes through real time feedback and model iteration. This shifts advertising from manual, experience based trial and error to a system of continuous, AI-driven performance optimization.

These agents operate together within Shoplazza’s AI-native commerce operating system, where merchant intent is translated directly into coordinated execution. By unifying store creation, content production, and marketing into a single system, Shoplazza replaces fragmented workflows with an integrated layer of automation that enables faster, more predictable growth.

Shoplazza currently supports more than 650,000 merchants worldwide. With its AI-native architecture, the platform brings together previously disconnected capabilities into a single intelligent system, delivering improvements in efficiency, scalability, and operational reliability for businesses operating in increasingly complex global markets.

Looking ahead, Shoplazza will introduce Athena very soon, an AI admin agent designed to extend automation into day to day business management. Covering areas such as product management, order processing, analytics, and content operations, Athena allows merchants to interact with the system conversationally while orchestrating multiple agents in the background. This will complete a fully connected agent ecosystem spanning store creation, creative production, marketing execution, and ongoing operations.

“Commerce has reached a point where adding more tools no longer solves the problem,” said Jeff Li, Founder and CEO of Shoplazza. “What merchants need is a system that can understand intent and execute across the entire business. That is what we are building with our AI native commerce operating system. It is not just about making things easier. It is about making outcomes more predictable, scalable, and aligned with how modern commerce actually operates.”

About Shoplazza

Shoplazza is a global AI-native commerce operating system that enables brands to build, launch, and scale their online businesses. Built on an AI agent-native framework, Shoplazza integrates storefronts, marketing, payments, and operational workflows into a unified system designed to support scalable, long-term growth across global markets. Learn more at https://www.shoplazza.com/.

 

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SOURCE Shoplazza

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Pricer and JRTech Solutions sign 51 MUSD digital store transformation deal with Sobeys in Canada

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MONTREAL, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ – Pricer AB, a global leader in digital shelf-edge solutions, announces that its Canadian partner JRTech Solutions has signed a major agreement with Sobeys, one of Canada’s leading supermarket chains. The contract includes the deployment of Pricer’s latest electronic shelf label (ESL) technology and the cloud-based platform Pricer Plaza across an estimated 300–350 stores.

The agreement covers the supply of multicolor electronic shelf labels and the necessary store infrastructure, with a total hardware and infrastructure value of approximately 51 MUSD (excluding Pricer Plaza). The deployment is scheduled for an 18-month period starting in May 2026.

“We are very grateful for the trust and that Sobeys has once again chosen Pricer as its long-term strategic partner,” says Mats Arnehall, Chief Growth Officer at Pricer. “This deal confirms our leading position in the North American market and the value of our high-performance system in high-density retail environments. Our scalable cloud platform, Pricer Plaza, will be the intelligence behind every label, enabling Sobeys to act faster and work smarter.”

“After years of close collaboration and shared success, we’re proud to grow our partnership with Sobeys even further with an expanded rollout,” says Diego Mazzone, President and CEO of JRTech Solutions. “That momentum is driven by our ability to consistently deliver reliable, high-quality solutions in complex retail environments. Together, we are positioning our digital smart labels at the heart of a broader digital transformation, driving operational excellence, unlocking real-time intelligence, and creating meaningful value for both Sobeys and their customers.”

Orders will be included in Pricer’s order intake as they are received.

About JRTech Solutions
JRTech Solutions Inc. is the leading North American turnkey Electronic Shelf Label (ESL) provider and the largest worldwide distributor of Pricer ESLs, involved in over 2,000 store installations since 2008. JRTech Solutions is the exclusive Canadian provider of AI-powered inventory scanning robotics powered by Brain Corp for automated inventory management.
For further information: www.jrtechsolutions.com

About Pricer
Pricer is a pioneer and partner for in-store communication and digitalization in the rapidly evolving retail tech landscape. As a global technology leader, we empower leading retailers worldwide to shape effortless and inspiring shopping experiences that fundamentally change buying behaviors, boost sales, and drive operational efficiency. Leveraging cutting-edge innovation, we deliver scalable, high-performing solutions that easily integrate with existing systems, are energy-efficient, and user-friendly. Founded in Sweden in 1991 and listed on Nasdaq Stockholm, Pricer has delivered over 380 million electronic shelf labels in more than 28,000 stores across more than 80 countries.
For further information, please visit www.pricer.com

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SOURCE JRTECH SOLUTIONS INC.

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Mitate Zepto Technica Joins JST’s Next-generation Edge AI Semiconductor R&D Program as Social Implementation Partner

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– MZT to Lead Product Commercialization through Its Genome-analysis Accelerator “RASEN” –

TOKYO, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Mitate Zepto Technica, Inc. (hereinafter “MZT”), based in Tokyo’s Shibuya district, announced on April 20 that it has joined the national research initiative “Next-Generation Edge AI Semiconductor Research and Development Program” promoted by the Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST). MZT participates as a designated social implementation and commercialization partner for the research theme “Accelerating Edge Intelligence for AI for Science” (Principal Investigator: Makoto Taiji, Program Director, TRIP Headquarters, RIKEN).

Logo: https://kyodonewsprwire.jp/img/202604167540-O1-5Sz6I68Q 

This research theme aims to achieve advanced computational infrastructure through the integration of AI technology and next-generation edge semiconductors, with genome analysis as one of its key application domains. MZT participates as an organization responsible for the productization and social implementation of research outcomes through its proprietary genome-analysis accelerator “RASEN.”

Background

Since its founding in 2020, MZT has pursued a distinctive approach to genome analysis: purpose-built ASIC acceleration. Following technology validation through joint research with Tohoku University and other partners, MZT now participates as an R&D institution responsible for social implementation under this research theme.

MZT’s Role in the Program

Within this research theme, MZT will integrate AI research outcomes from RIKEN and Tohoku University into the RASEN architecture, and lead the R&D work toward social implementation through ASIC development and productization. As the industrial partner bridging research and real-world deployment, the company targets social implementation by 2029.

Program Overview

Research theme: Accelerating edge intelligence for AI for science
Promoting agency: Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)
Principal investigator: Makoto Taiji, Program Director, TRIP Headquarters, RIKEN
Participating institutions: RIKEN, Tohoku University, Keio University, Mitate Zepto Technica
MZT’s participation start: April 2026 (FY2026)
JST program period: FY2025 onwards

Comment from Keisuke Harashima, President & CEO, Mitate Zepto Technica:
“It is a tremendous honor that we can lead the social implementation of this research theme through the acceleration of genome analysis via dedicated semiconductors — a challenge we have pursued since MZT’s founding. RASEN is at exactly the right inflection point, transitioning from research to real-world deployment. We will use this participation to accelerate commercialization across healthcare, drug discovery, and research infrastructure.”

About RASEN

RASEN is MZT’s proprietary genome-analysis accelerator under development, built on a purpose-designed ASIC architecture. In internal validation, RASEN has demonstrated the ability to complete whole-genome sequencing (WGS) analysis in approximately 5 minutes on a standard workstation — without the need for supercomputers or high-performance computing infrastructure. In independent validation studies conducted with Tohoku University, RASEN achieved 99.8% concordance with conventional analysis methods across 12 samples, confirming that its speed advantage does not come at the cost of accuracy.

About Mitate Zepto Technica

Mitate Zepto Technica is a Japanese deep-tech startup developing purpose-built semiconductor solutions for genome analysis. By harnessing cutting-edge chip technology, MZT aims to deliver transformative speed improvements in genomic computation –contributing to the resolution of global challenges in healthcare, food security, and energy through its proprietary products.

Website: https://mitatezeptotechnica.com/en/company/ 

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SOURCE Mitate Zepto Technica, Inc.

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