Warehouse management system (WMS) software vendor Softeon will be acquired by the Swedish enterprise resource planning (ERP) software vendor IFS in a move that IFS said would create an integrated platform that connects manufacturing operations seamlessly with intelligent warehouse execution.IFS said it made the move as global enterprises face mounting pressure to modernize supply chains, rebuild aging infrastructure, and navigate persistent labor shortages. Those factors make the connection between production and distribution more critical than ever, prompting IFS to extend its industrial artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities into the $8.6 billion warehouse management systems market, the company said.Specifically, IFS and Softeon say they will apply Industrial AI directly into warehouse operations, challenging a traditional WMS segment where legacy systems rely on manual processes and paper-based workflows. Their combined solution will embed agentic AI and physical AI orchestration into every aspect of warehouse management, from fulfillment and labor optimization to real-time yard visibility and automation integration, the two companies said.Reston, Virginia-based Softeon provides cloud-native warehouse management, warehouse execution, and distributed order management solutions. Its customers include Sears Homes Services, Sony DADC, and DB Schenker Logistics.Terms of the deal were not disclosed. But IFS purchased Softeon in part from Warburg Pincus, a private equity firm that had first invested in a minority stake of the software firm in 2019. In an announcement posted to LinkedIn today, Warburg Pincus said that over the course of that period, Softeon’s architecture was modernized, resulting in the company’s first outbound go-to-market engine and channel partnership strategy. “Our…
