The company behind the Roomba robot vacuum cleaner has filed for bankruptcy, in part due to President Donald Trump’s sprawling global tariffs, Reuters reported. iRobot filed for Chapter 11 and is now set to be acquired by its principal manufacturer, the China-based Picea Robotics. According to the BBC, the firm made the call “after facing competition from Chinese rivals and being hit by tariffs.” Most of iRobot’s goods come from Vietnam, which had 46 percent tariffs imposed on it by Trump earlier this year. That sent costs skyrocketing by $23 million amid vital technological investment, the firm said. “Picea will receive 100 percent of the equity interests in the company... and enable iRobot to continue operating in the ordinary course, pursue its product development roadmap, and maintain its global footprint,” it said in a statement. In the aftermath of the pandemic, the 7,000-employee company was valued at $3.56 billion, but that figure has now plummeted to $140 million.
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