iRobot (IRBT) goes bankrupt less than 2 years after Amazon abandoned acquisition due to regulators

Shares of iRobot crashed over 75% today on the news that the robotics firm has filed for bankruptcy and will be taken private by Shenzhen Picea Robotics, a key supplier and creditor. The company was nearly acquired in 2024 by Amazon for $1.7 billion, but the technology behemoth was forced to abandon the deal after increased regulatory scrutiny from both the United States Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the European Union.

Former iRobot CEO Colin Angle called the company’s decision to file for bankruptcy “nothing short of a tragedy for consumers” adding that it was “profoundly disappointing. iRobot claims it currently has $100 million of assets and $500 million of liabilities on its balance sheet, making bankruptcy its only option. The firm has had to fire hundreds of employees after Amazon called off the $1.7 billion deal. and faced even more hardships created by Trump’s trade war in 2025. The Roomba maker still owes the U.S. Customs and Border Protection department nearly $3.4 million in unpaid tariffs.

While regulation of anticompetitive behavior tends to be a good thing in the technology space, it is hard to not point out that the actions of the FTC and EU have pushed a cutting edge American robotics company and all of its intellectual property into the hands of a Chinese company. iRobot Co-founder Helen Greiner said in a LinkedIn post today that this bankruptcy restructuring plan with a Chinese parent company is not good for “consumers, employees, stockholders, Massachusetts or the USA.”

iRobot has faced increasing competition in recent years, so today’s news isn’t as surprising as it is just sad. The company claims that the ongoing bankruptcy proceedings should not impact customer service or the functionality of its products going forward.

iRobot (IRBT) hit an all-time high price of $197.40/share in January 2021 and shareholders will be left with nothing. 

This article is only meant for educational purposes, and should not be taken as investment advice. Please consider your own investment time horizon, risk tolerance, and consult with a financial advisor before acting on this information.

Full Disclosure:

At the time of this article, Shacknews primary shareholder Asif A. Khan, his family members, or his company Virtue LLC had the following positions:

Long iRobot via IRBT call options

Asif Khan is the CEO, EIC, and majority shareholder of Shacknews. He began his career in video game journalism as a freelancer in 2001 for Tendobox.com. Asif is a CPA and was formerly an investment adviser representative. After much success in his own personal investments, he retired from his day job in financial services and is currently focused on new private investments. His favorite PC game of all time is Duke Nukem 3D, and he is an unapologetic fan of most things Nintendo. Asif first frequented the Shack when it was sCary’s Shugashack to find all things Quake. When he is not immersed in investments or gaming he is a purveyor of fine electronic music. Asif also has an irrational love of Cleveland sports.