Rivals clean up as Roomba robot vacuum cleaner maker files for bankruptcy
Roomba maker swept into bankruptcy
- iRobot, the manufacturer of the Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US.
- This action is part of a restructuring plan where Shenzhen-based Picea Robotics, iRobot's primary supplier and lender, will acquire all outstanding shares.
- The bankruptcy follows the collapse of Amazon's proposed £1.3 billion takeover of iRobot in January of last year.
- The Amazon deal was blocked by EU competition regulators due to concerns it could harm competition for rival products on Amazon’s online marketplace.
- iRobot has faced significant pressure from more affordable Chinese competitors and surging US tariffs on goods from Vietnam, where most of its products are made.