Robot vacuum maker’s bankruptcy follows slumping sales and a failed Amazon takeover.
iRobot, the Massachusetts-based company best known for its Roomba robotic vacuum cleaners, filed for bankruptcy protection on Dec. 14.
The company said on Dec. 14 that it had entered into an agreement to be acquired by its secured lender and primary manufacturer, Picea Robotics, through a court-supervised process. The transaction would take iRobot private and end the listing of its shares on the Nasdaq.
Founded in 1990, iRobot became a household name after launching the first Roomba robot vacuum in 2002. Over the past several years, however, the company has struggled with declining sales, supply chain disruptions, and the collapse of a planned acquisition by Amazon, pressures that ultimately eroded its liquidity.
“Today’s announcement marks a pivotal milestone in securing iRobot’s long-term future,” Chief Executive Officer Gary Cohen said in a statement on Dec. 14. “The transaction will strengthen our financial position and will help deliver continuity for our consumers, customers, and partners.”
The bankruptcy filing followed a steady deterioration in iRobot’s financial position, as outlined in its most recent earnings reports.
In its third-quarter results released on Nov. 6, iRobot reported cash and cash equivalents of $24.8 million as of Sept. 27, 2025, down from $40.6 million at the end of the previous quarter. The company also reported $5 million in restricted cash, which was fully drawn on Sept. 30, 2025, leaving it with no remaining sources of additional capital.
Revenue performance deteriorated across key markets. In the third quarter, revenue fell 33 percent in the United States, 13 percent in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and nine percent in Japan compared with the same period a year earlier.
“Our third-quarter revenue fell well below our internal expectations due to continuing market headwinds, ongoing production delays, and unforeseen shipping disruptions,” Cohen said on Nov. 6.
“This shortfall increased cash usage and pressured profitability, as we were unable to fully leverage our fixed cost base.”
The acquisition of iRobot by Picea—a Chinese company headquartered in Shenzhen—could draw concerns over personal data collection and use. In 2022, privacy campaigners raised surveillance fears in a letter to the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), questioning whether Amazon’s proposed purchase of iRobot would allow the company to access maps of users’ homes generated by the vacuum’s navigation system and potentially “endanger human rights and safety.”
