The smart home niche has introduced many technologies that can help you with basic or complex household chores, and that's what iRobot has been all about.
However, as much as the Roomba came to take the market by storm, it also saw massive setbacks, challenges, and eventually, its latest fall that led to its filing for bankruptcy.
Roomba's Rise: iRobot Dominance
It all started in a lab in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the 1990s, where roboticists Colin Angle, Helen Greiner, and Rodney Brooks founded an AI company to build a platform for robotics called "iRobot."
According to Angle, via an interview with The Verge, the goal was not always to develop a robot vacuum, but they were heavily inspired by "Rosey," a robot maid from the hit cartoon, "The Jetsons."
The company secured funding in 1999, and here, they were able to develop the first iteration of the Roomba, which hit the shelves three years later in 2002. The company sold its first Roomba for $200 at stores like Brookstone, Sharper Image, and Hammacher Schlemmer.
iRobot's Roomba was the first American robot vacuum developed, and it is the second-made in the world after Swedish tech company Electrolux debuted the Trilobite only a year ahead.
It was only in 2005 when the company went public with a valuation of over $100 million. Alongside this move, the company sold its security robotics division and also focused on robotic lawn mowing. However, while the company developed Terra in 2019, they did not launch it publicly.
Following the Roomba's success, iRobot dedicated its company to develop other consumer robotics tech, including the shop vac "Dirt Dog," the pool cleaning version of the Roomba, "Verro," and the gutter cleaning bot, the "Looj."
Alongside this, the company has continuously developed the Roomba with more powerful capabilities and advanced features that helped define the smart home.
Later on, they acquired an air purification company called Aeris for $70 million, but their product failed to compete against the rising star in the market at that time, Dyson.
iRobot Files for Bankruptcy
The company is best known for its impressive patents on its technological developments that kept the competition at bay.
However, its developments, patents, and established name were not enough to keep the company afloat, and the company turned to a deal with Amazon that was set to save the robotics company via an acquisition in 2022.
This $1.7 billion deal was already locked and loaded, with the US government fully on board with the acquisition, but European regulators stepped in with antitrust concerns.
Both companies mutually parted ways in 2024 as they saw no future in their fight against EU's antitrust, and their year started badly with long-time CEO and co-founder, Colin Angle, stepping down from his role.
The planned restructuring and strategies to resurrect the once-leading US robotics company that, at one point, saw its highest valuation at over $4 billion in 2021 failed to overturn their misfortunes in a year.
On December 14, 2025, the company announced that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, selling the once multi-billion-dollar corporation to Shenzhen PICEA Robotics Co., Ltd. and Santrum Hong Kong Co., Limited, collectively known as Picea.
iRobot will remain a private company under Picea, and they are still set to develop their robots, smart home products, software, and more for the years to come.
Roomba will continue to see developments and deliver its proven experiences over the years but now, under new leadership.
Originally published on Tech Times
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