How did the Roomba start the robotics revolution?

If you had a Roomba, especially in the early days of robotic vacuums, in many ways it was a fairly unsophisticated machine. It will wander around your house, looking for something to suck on, until its battery dies or its (very small) tank is full. But that’s not important. You probably loved your Roomba. Maybe I gave it a name.

on This episode of Release datewe tell the story of the Roomba, and how it made vacuum cleaners popular. EdgeJoin iRobot co-founder David Pearce, Jennifer Pattison Toohey and former CEO Colin Angell to trace the robotics revolution back to its origins, with a group of engineers desperately trying to build a business out of robots. What kind of robots. We explain how iRobot developed the Roomba for nearly a decade, all the times it was on the brink of failure, and the somewhat surprising reasons for the product’s success. We also look at the massive market that has grown around the Roomba, and the ways iRobot has failed to keep up.

This is the second episode of the fourth season of the series Release date. If you missed last week’s season premiere, On the Harmony remote controlMake sure you catch up! Here’s how to get every episode and all the other fun stuff as soon as it drops:

If you want to learn more about the Roomba’s long backstory, here are some links to get you started: