The Morning After: Is the Roomba an endangered species?
The company behind Roomba robovacs told investors earlier this week that revenue was substantially down and it’s struggling to pay its debts. Amazon was briefly tapped to acquire the robot company iRobot, but the threat of a European Commission investigation led to the retailer terminating the deal — apparently happy enough to pay off the $94 million termination fee.
That, however, isn’t enough to tackle the $200 million loan iRobot took out to survive long enough for Amazon to come to the rescue. It’s extra rough when the company announced, just the week before, a bunch of new models, including a new Roomba that can compact debris and dust, so it only needs to be emptied every few weeks.
At the same time, rival robot vacuum cleaners are getting more versatile, more complicated and more intriguing. This year’s CES had a standout barrage of new robovacs that can multitask and even pack robot arms inside, like something from a cartoon.
But many of these devices haven’t yet launched in earnest, while iRobot has delivered solid floor cleaners for years. Hopefully, it can continue that run.
— Mat Smith
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An internal video from Sony’s PlayStation group was leaked to The Verge, demonstrating an AI-powered version of Aloy, the Horizon game series’ protagonist.
Aloy was able to both narrate and converse with the presenter as you play the game. The character could also respond in real-time to questions, with a synthesized voice that matched facial animations. The face-to-face chat between the presenter and the on-screen character wasn’t super remarkable, but Aloy’s running commentary was a little more intriguing. She could explain enemies typically found in the surrounding area and flag her own health levels and that she’s under attack.
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This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-121544992.html?src=rss
The company behind Roomba robovacs told investors earlier this week that revenue was substantially down and it’s struggling to pay its debts. Amazon was briefly tapped to acquire the robot company iRobot, but the threat of a European Commission investigation led to the retailer terminating the deal — apparently happy…
