曾經定義產業標準的美國品牌iRobot，在長期營運失速與資金鏈斷裂後，最終透過破產重整，被中國代工與供應鏈企業以「債轉股」的方式全面接手，象徵產業主導權已從品牌與技術發源地，轉移至成本、製造與系統整合能力更強的一方。

iRobot成立於1990年，是最早將家用機器人商業化的公司之一，旗下Roomba幾乎等同於掃地機器人的代名詞。三十多年來，iRobot累計銷售超過5000萬台機器人產品，在早期建立完整的專利壁壘、通路網絡與品牌溢價能力，一度在北美與歐洲市場長期佔據主導地位。然而，這種優勢在近十年間逐漸被侵蝕。隨著感測器、導航演算法與馬達模組逐步商品化，掃地機器人的技術門檻快速下降，產業競爭轉為「速度、成本與整體體驗」的全面對抗，iRobot原本倚賴的專利與品牌光環，開始顯得力不從心。

從2022年開始，iRobot的經營問題正式浮上檯面。當年第二季財報顯示，其營收年減約1.12億美元，跌幅接近三成，此後營收一路下滑，到2025年第二季僅剩1.28億美元。與此同時，中國品牌如科沃斯、石頭科技、追覓等加速出海，憑藉更快的產品迭代、更激進的定價策略，以及在吸拖洗整合、自動集塵與智慧避障上的高性價比方案，迅速攻占歐美主流電商平台，直接衝擊iRobot的核心市場。iRobot不僅在價格上無法競爭，在產品更新節奏與功能豐富度上也逐漸落後，市佔率與毛利率同步下滑。

為了自救，iRobot曾嘗試引入外部力量。亞馬遜在 2022年提出以約17億美元收購iRobot，希望藉此補齊智慧家庭生態的一環，並強化其硬體布局。然而，這樁收購案在歐盟遭遇強烈監管阻力。歐盟委員會認為，若亞馬遜同時掌握電商平台與硬體品牌，可能透過演算法、曝光排序或上下架機制排擠競爭對手，削弱市場競爭，進而導致價格上升、品質下降與創新減少。最終，亞馬遜在 2024年1月正式放棄收購，iRobot失去最後一條可能的「白衣騎士」路線。

收購破局後，iRobot的財務狀況迅速惡化。2025年3月12日，公司公開表示對持續經營能力存在重大疑慮，消息一出，股價單日暴跌超過30%，市場基本宣告其自行翻身的可能性已經破滅。截至2025年11月24日，iRobot的總負債已超過3.5億美元，其中對主要供應商深圳杉川機器人的欠款高達1.615億美元。在現金流枯竭、融資管道關閉的情況下，這筆巨額欠款已無力償還，只能進入破產保護與重整程序。

真正改變公司命運的關鍵，在於債權結構。深圳杉川機器人作為iRobot的核心代工與供應夥伴，長期深度參與其產品製造體系。此次重整中，杉川不僅是最大債權人，還進一步從美國私募巨頭凱雷集團手中收購iRobot的大部分債務，最終透過債轉股安排，與其全資子公司一同取得iRobot的100% 控制權。換言之，原本的欠條，最終換成一整家公司，債主被迫成為股東，但也因此掌握了品牌、專利、通路與海外市場入口。

這筆交易對杉川而言，並不只是一次被動的風險承接，更是一場高風險但具戰略意義的豪賭。好消息是，重整後的iRobot仍保有其全球品牌影響力、專利資產與成熟的銷售通路，這些都是新創品牌短期內難以複製的資源。如果杉川能夠將中國市場「極度內卷」中鍛鍊出的供應鏈效率、快速研發能力與成本控制能力注入iRobot，重新打造具競爭力的產品線，iRobot在海外市場並非完全沒有重生的機會。

從更宏觀的角度來看，這起事件也象徵著全球消費型機器人產業的權力轉移。過去由美日企業主導創新與品牌定義，如今則由掌握製造、工程優化與快速迭代能力的中國企業，逐步反向收編老牌國際品牌。iRobot的易主，不只是單一公司的興衰，更是產業話語權轉換的縮影，未來它能否在新東家手中重拾競爭力，將成為全球掃地機器人市場一個極具指標性的觀察案例。

iRobot, the American brand that once defined industry standards, has been forced into bankruptcy protection after prolonged operational decline and a breakdown in its financial structure. Ultimately, the company was taken over through a debt-to-equity restructuring by its Chinese manufacturing and supply-chain partner, marking a transfer of industry leadership from the original brand innovator to a company with stronger cost control, manufacturing efficiency, and system integration capabilities.

Founded in 1990, iRobot was one of the earliest companies to successfully commercialize household robotics. Its Roomba line became virtually synonymous with robot vacuum cleaners. Over more than three decades, iRobot sold over 50 million robots worldwide and built formidable advantages in patents, distribution channels, and brand premium, once dominating markets in North America and Europe. However, these strengths gradually eroded over the past decade. As sensors, navigation algorithms, and motor components became increasingly standardized, technological barriers fell rapidly. Competition shifted toward speed, cost, and overall user experience, leaving iRobot’s reliance on patents and brand recognition insufficient to maintain its edge.

By 2022, iRobot’s operational problems had become undeniable. In the second quarter of that year, the company reported a year-over-year revenue decline of approximately $112 million, nearly a 30% drop. Revenue continued to slide, reaching just $128 million by the second quarter of 2025. Meanwhile, Chinese brands such as Ecovacs, Dreame, and Roborock aggressively expanded overseas. Leveraging faster product iteration, more competitive pricing, and feature-rich solutions—including combined vacuuming and mopping, automatic dust collection, and advanced obstacle avoidance—these brands rapidly captured shelf space on major Western e-commerce platforms. iRobot struggled to compete not only on price, but also on product update cycles and functional depth, leading to simultaneous declines in market share and profit margins.

In an attempt to reverse its fortunes, iRobot sought external rescue through acquisition. In 2022, Amazon proposed acquiring iRobot for approximately $1.7 billion, aiming to strengthen its smart-home ecosystem and hardware strategy. However, the deal encountered intense regulatory resistance in the European Union. The European Commission argued that Amazon’s ownership of both a dominant e-commerce platform and a major hardware brand could enable it to suppress competitors through product visibility controls, ranking algorithms, or delisting practices. Such intervention, regulators warned, could result in higher prices, lower quality, and reduced innovation. As a result, Amazon formally abandoned the acquisition in January 2024, eliminating iRobot’s last realistic chance of a “white knight” bailout.

After the collapse of the Amazon deal, iRobot’s financial condition deteriorated rapidly. On March 12, 2025, the company publicly stated that it faced substantial doubt about its ability to continue as a going concern. The announcement triggered a stock price plunge of more than 30% in a single day, effectively signaling that self-recovery was no longer feasible. By November 24, 2025, iRobot’s total liabilities had exceeded $350 million. Of this amount, $161.5 million was owed to its primary supplier, Shenzhen Sichuan Robot Co., Ltd. With cash flow exhausted and financing channels closed, the debt became impossible to repay, forcing iRobot into bankruptcy protection and restructuring.

The decisive factor in the restructuring was the ownership of debt. As iRobot’s key manufacturing and supply-chain partner, Shenzhen Sichuan Robot had long been deeply embedded in its production system. During the restructuring process, Sichuan not only stood as the largest creditor, but also acquired most of iRobot’s outstanding debt from the U.S. investment firm Carlyle Group. Through a debt-to-equity conversion, Sichuan and its wholly owned subsidiary ultimately gained 100% control of iRobot. In effect, a stack of unpaid promissory notes was exchanged for an entire company, turning creditors into shareholders while transferring full ownership of the brand.

For Sichuan, this transaction was not merely a passive assumption of risk, but a high-stakes strategic bet. On the positive side, the restructured iRobot retains its globally recognized brand, extensive patent portfolio, and established international distribution channels—assets that new entrants would struggle to replicate in the short term. If Sichuan can inject the cost efficiency, rapid engineering iteration, and supply-chain discipline forged in China’s intensely competitive domestic market, iRobot may yet regain a foothold in overseas markets.

Viewed from a broader perspective, this case symbolizes a structural shift in the global consumer robotics industry. Where innovation and brand leadership were once dominated by American and Japanese companies, control is increasingly migrating toward Chinese firms that excel in manufacturing scale, engineering optimization, and rapid commercialization. iRobot’s change in ownership is not merely the rise and fall of a single company, but a reflection of a deeper transfer of industrial influence. Whether iRobot can reclaim competitiveness under its new owner will become a key indicator for the future trajectory of the global robot vacuum market.