Japanese engine and heavy equipment manufacturer Kawasaki Heavy Industries has partnered with Nvidia and Microsoft to create a business focused on integrating AI with robotics at a new center in San Jose, California.

According to reporting from Nikkei, the companies will integrate AI with robotic technologies across a range of fields, with healthcare and mobility the entry point.

As part of the tie-up, Nvidia’s simulation technology will be applied to Kawasaki Heavy Industries' Corleo, a four-legged personal mobility robot under development. Kawasaki will also use Nvidia’s AI systems for control and environmental recognition.

The San Jose Center will house the industrial robots and will be used for demonstrations and development with US partner companies. Partner companies include Analog Devices, Microsoft, and Fujitsu, with a view to potential expansion down the line.

The partnership adds to Kawasaki’s growing focus on the robotics market. For example, in February, the firm established a research and development hub for medical robots in Strasbourg, France. Its robotics division has generated ($583 million) in revenue for the previous fiscal year ended March 31. The division focuses on robots integrated into semiconductor manufacturing equipment.

Kawasaki is not the only company investing more energy in the robotics sector. In April, it was reported that Japanese technology giant SoftBank was looking to use robots in data center construction through a new entity, dubbed Roze AI.

Robots within active data centers have been trialed in a number of locations, and 3D printing has previously been used to build a data center in Germany. Foxconn recently said it aims to deploy humanoid robots in its factories to manufacture servers.