Neato Robotics, the company behind the Neato brand and its "D"-shaped robot vacuums, is closing up shop.
A spokesperson for Germany's Vorwerk Group, which acquired Neato back in 2017, told TechHive via email that Neato is "now closed despite numerous restructuring efforts" and that the company "has not achieved its self-defined economic goals. for several years now."
The closure will "affect" 98 employees, Vorwerk spokesman Stefan Watzinger said.
After Neato ceases operations, Vorwerk will also "take over" a 14-person team in Milan to "ensure the security of Neato's cloud services infrastructure for at least five years," with spare parts and repairs "guaranteed." for at least five years," says Watzinger.
Neato, which was founded in 2005 and created a line of acclaimed robot vacuums, was known for its D-shaped robots, a design that makes it easier for vacuum cleaners to clean the corners and edges of rooms.
Neato vacuums were also among the first to incorporate LiDAR technology to map rooms.
The Vorwerk Group acquired Neato in 2017, but the robot vacuum maker has continued to operate independently, according to VentureBeat.
Users on the Neato Robotics subreddit began to suspect something was up when the company's customer login page URL started throwing 503 errors.
They later noticed that Neato's Twitter account had been deleted and its Facebook page had been deactivated. Neato's Instagram and YouTube accounts are still active.
Neato users have also complained that they have heard nothing but "crickets" from Neato support staff.
In response to a question about Neato's user login errors, Watzinger said that "the Neato team is working hard to fix the issues...as soon as possible," adding that "the technical issues are unrelated to the news [of Neato's closure] in anyway."
We've reviewed several Neato vacuums over the years, including 2018's Neato Botvac D7 Connected and last year's Neato D10.
We praised the Neato D7 for its "excellent navigation" and "deep cleaning" and added: "If the Neato Botvac D7 is any indication of where robot vacuum technology is headed, the future of housework looks bright."
We also liked the Neato D10, a LIDAR-enabled robovac that offers HEPA filtration, though we called its $599 price tag "a bit steep for its capabilities."
Despite shuttering the Neato brand, Vorwerk still wants to "expand its investment in vacuum cleaner robotics." But it will do so by "centrally consolidating development capabilities" at a research and development site in Germany, "where 50 developers and engineers [will] develop both professional and consumer robotics systems," Watzinger said.
In addition to Neato, Vorwerk also owns the vacuum cleaner brand Kobold, which includes robotic vacuum cleaners among its various models, as well as Nexaro, which specializes in robotic vacuum cleaners for commercial spaces.
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