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Robotics startup that made cute toy Cozmo shuts down

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SAN FRANCISCO - A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down.

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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 29/04/2019 (2649 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

SAN FRANCISCO – A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down.

San Francisco-based Anki says it’s laying off its employees on Wednesday after failing to raise enough money to keep the business going.

The company said last year it’s sold more than 1.5 million products, including the car-racing game Overdrive and Cozmo, a playful robotic pet. Anki introduced its newest robot, Vector, last year.

FILE- In this Jan. 10, 2018, file photo, Anki Cozmo coding robot is on display at CES International in Las Vegas. A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down. San Francisco-based Anki says it’s laying off its employees on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 after failing to raise enough money to keep the business going. It’s one of several high-profile makers of consumer robots to fold in the past year. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE- In this Jan. 10, 2018, file photo, Anki Cozmo coding robot is on display at CES International in Las Vegas. A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down. San Francisco-based Anki says it’s laying off its employees on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 after failing to raise enough money to keep the business going. It’s one of several high-profile makers of consumer robots to fold in the past year. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)

It’s one of several high-profile makers of consumer robots to fold in the past year. Boston-based Jibo shut down less than a year after its squat, talking speaker made the cover of Time Magazine. California-based Mayfield Robotics also last year cancelled Kuri, a roving home robot.

News of Anki’s closure was first reported by Recode.

In this July 30, 2018 file photo, Anki Inc. CEO Boris Sofman holds Vector, the company's new home robot, in New York. A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down. San Francisco-based Anki says it’s laying off its employees on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 after failing to raise enough money to keep the business going. It’s one of several high-profile makers of consumer robots to fold in the past year. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, file)
In this July 30, 2018 file photo, Anki Inc. CEO Boris Sofman holds Vector, the company's new home robot, in New York. A startup that tried to advance the dream of intelligent robots in the home with its toy robot Cozmo is shutting down. San Francisco-based Anki says it’s laying off its employees on Wednesday, May 1, 2019 after failing to raise enough money to keep the business going. It’s one of several high-profile makers of consumer robots to fold in the past year. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, file)

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