- iRobot filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy
- There should be no immediate disruption for Roomba owners
- A new owner, Picea Robotics, takes over
We knew iRobot was in trouble and the smart vacuum cleaner officially filed for bankruptcy. However, operations will continue under Chinese manufacturer Picea Robotics, a company that had already been building Roombas for iRobot.
According to the BBC, the Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing was necessary in the face of growing competition and heavy tariffs being imposed on devices imported into the United States. Currently, most iRobot smart vacuum cleaners are shipped to the US from Vietnam.
As for what this could mean for its Roomba, iRobot says there should be no immediate changes to product support, supply chain production, or mobile apps that accompany smart home hardware. At least for the moment, you can continue using your smart vacuum cleaner throughout the house.
iRobot got its start in space and defense technology in 1990, before launching its first Roomba vacuum cleaner in 2002. After a pandemic-fueled surge in demand, the company was valued at $3.56 billion in 2021, but that valuation has now dropped to around $140 million.
What we know about Picea Robotics
Picea Robotics is based in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen and is not new to the smart home scene: in addition to previously making devices for iRobot, it also has partnerships with Shark and Anker (which has the Eufy smart home brand).
Also known as 3irobotix, Picea Robotics also previously launched its own range of smart vacuum cleaners, as well as having a strong interest in other types of technology, including robotic hardware, as The Verge reports.
The new owners of the iRobot brand are certainly no newcomers: the Picea Group as a whole has been around since 2016 and currently employs more than 600 people in research and development, and 5,000 people in manufacturing. You should know what you’re doing, but at this early stage it’s difficult to predict exactly what you’ll do with iRobot.
iRobot says the move will lead to “long-term growth and innovation” and that the brand will emerge stronger from the bankruptcy process. It will also once again be a private company owned by Picea Robotics.
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