The company that powers most smartphones has been bought for more than $30 billion. The new owners of ARM Holdings plan to harness its capabilities to boost the Internet of Things.

ARM, based in Cambridge in the United Kingdom, is best known for having designed the ARM processor and related software architecture. The approach meant computing devices could handle instructions much more efficiently than before, reducing the physical size of processors and the electrical power used. That in turn made portable devices such as laptops, tablets and smartphones far more viable. Licensing the technology brings in more than a billion US dollars a year in revenue to the company.

The new owners, Japanese company Softbank, already own Sprint and the Japanese section of Vodafone. Its chief Masayoshi Son says the ARM purchase is part of a plan to “invest to capture the very significant opportunities provided by the internet of things.”

The logic is to use ARM’s experience and knowledge in miniaturizing processors to boost the use of sensors and other Internet-connected devices beyond traditional computers.