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| Photo Credit: AP. |
American e-commerce giant Amazon Friday said it plans to buy vacuum cleaner maker iRobot for nearly $1.7 billion.
iRobot is
well known for the circular-shaped Roomba vacuum, which would join voice
assistant Alexa, the Astro robot and Ring security cameras and others in the
list of smart home features offered by the Seattle-based tech giant, The
Associated Press reports. The company’s products are found around the world.
Neil
Saunders, managing director at GlobalData Retail said the deal is part of
Amazon’s own expansion of the home space through services and would accelerate its
growth beyond retail, according to The Associated Press.
The Associated
Press reported that the home-cleaning robots adds to the company’s tech arsenal,
making it more involved in consumers’ lives beyond static things like voice
control. The technology used by the latest Roombas use sensors to map-and
remember a home floor’s plan.
iRobot lays off 10% of workforce
On Friday
iRobot announced it was laying-off 10% of its workforce after posting quarterly
figures that saw the company’s revenue plunge 30%.
Amazon will
acquire iRobot for $61 per share in an all-cash transaction that also includes
iRobot’s net debt. The company total debts stood at approximately $332.1
million as of July 2, The Associated Press reports. iRobot’s CEO, Colin Angle
will remain in position as part of the deal.