The Roomba failed because it just kind of sucked

Opinion Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics are trumped by accountancy's First Law of Finance: you must make money. iRobot, the company behind the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner, is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with its Chinese manufacturing partner-cum-creditor poised to pick over the bones.

The Roomba has been around for more than two decades, garnering great brand recognition and near-constant hardware and software innovation. It could turn a corner, but iRobot couldn't turn a profit. The company blamed a barrage of reasons for failure, including shipping delays, consumer timidity, and the joy of tariffs, with others pointing the finger at an army of low-cost knock-offs. Perhaps.

This is not a phrase you will have met before: today's vacuum cleaner market is fascinating. A microcosm of much bigger trends, with robotic cleaners using AI and constantly evolving mechanical ideas in a battle with sucking tubes. Students of techo-social ...