Amazon $1.7 Billion Buy out of iRobot Roomba

koplik8 on 10/08/2022 - 08:15
Last edited 10/08/2022 - 12:19 by 1 other user

I've just seen this today about Amazon now buying iRobot and having access to people house layouts. What's your thoughts:

Amazon will soon have a map of your home: Tech giant's buyout of Roomba will allow it to get detailed layout plans and let it to connect ALL smart devices to one system

As part of Amazon's $1.7 billion acquisition of iRobot, it will be in control of the company's new Robot OS, giving the company detailed maps of users' homes
Those maps could be used to gather even more data about each user
In developing the operating system, iRobot executives hoped to make all smart devices share information about usage and a person's whereabouts
The location of all these devices would be added to the map, and Amazon will be able to limit which companies can connect to their smart home systems

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Comments

  • Jimothy Wongingtons on 10/08/2022 - 08:18
    +11

    Well I mean if it’s not going to be bezos with a map of your place it’s going to be the CCP with their xiaomi gear ? (I have two xiaomi vaccum robots haha)

    • netjock on 10/08/2022 - 12:44
      +1

      Useful if China-US/Aus get into a war and they need to take territory house by house.

    • spc12go on 10/08/2022 - 21:29

      CCP already have your electricity usage pattern and they also know how much solar power your generate.

  • ForkSnorter on 10/08/2022 - 08:25
    +4

    I don't really mind. Amazon has improved my life by giving me easy access to a gazillion reasonably priced products, which arrive within days with free postage, as opposed to waiting weeks for overpriced and unreliable Australia Post.

    • Jimothy Wongingtons on 10/08/2022 - 08:28
      +4

      Speaking of which how has bezos not bought out australia post and become the biggest shipping/logistics supplier in Australia?

      • foxmulder on 10/08/2022 - 08:55
        +1

        It's cheaper for him to build his own.

      • Lord Fart Bucket on 10/08/2022 - 08:58
        +6

        He'd be stuck with all the people that are like the sloth from Zootopia.
        Yes, i mean you, the old guy at North Parramatta LPO!

      • ThithLord on 10/08/2022 - 09:00

        AusPost is owned by the government

        • Islund on 10/08/2022 - 13:11
          +2

          Speaking of which how come Bezos has not bought out the government?

      • Euphemistic on 10/08/2022 - 09:12

        Speaking of which how has bezos not bought out australia post and become the biggest shipping/logistics supplier in Australia?

        Just wants to build his own without unions.

      • netjock on 10/08/2022 - 12:46
        +1

        how has bezos not bought out australia post

        Because it is a regulated business, universal service obligations cost a fortune. Losses from letters are sucking up any profits they are making from parcels. Also very unionised. No point taking up legacy costs.

        Just look at UK Royal Mail now privatised. It was a good pop at IPO, made a few GBP from that but sold out quick because unions and regulation is going to send them to the wall.

        Telstra was a dog with fixed line universal obligations. Now NBN basically has the bag and look at how much tax payer money we are pumping in (both taxes and also high retail prices) and it is still not profitable.

        • illogicalerror on 10/08/2022 - 14:01
          +1

          New now of $1.9 billion net last year isn't profit?

          They are clean laughing all the way to the bank.

          • netjock on 10/08/2022 - 16:39
            +1

            @illogicalerror:

            New now of $1.9 billion net last year isn't profit?

            Unless you got a link to that then you're just telling porkies. Pretax profit in 2021 was just over $100m. Return on equity of 3%.

            2021 financial report

            The unions and the banks are laughing.

    • prodrome on 10/08/2022 - 09:30
      +4

      This is temporary. Once they have a monopoly, they'll jack up prices in the same way Bunnings did.

  • Muzeeb on 10/08/2022 - 09:05
    +2

    Only a very small percentage of houses in the world would have an iRobot.

    Time to remove the tin foil hats or change brands of your vacuum.

    • andresampras on 10/08/2022 - 12:50
      +3

      yeah but now that amazon owns em - maybe they'll do some $10 black friday specials.

      And then EVERYONE will submit their floorplans to Overlord Bezos

      • Muzeeb on 10/08/2022 - 12:50

        I'm happy to sell my floorplan to him for $10

        • andresampras on 10/08/2022 - 13:01

          me too, more than happy haha

          although the stupid things will probably have microphones in em too….

    • Lord Fart Bucket on 10/08/2022 - 15:58
      +1

      Can I put my tin foil hat on the iRobot?

  • spal on 10/08/2022 - 09:06
    +2

    So next time you are doing some work in the house and need the floor plan, just look under my data in your Amazon profile.

  • Euphemistic on 10/08/2022 - 09:15

    Amazon is too big to be anything other than underhanded in the way it deals with real people. The top ‘executives’ in their business are too busy trying to improve their bottom line by a smidgen of a percent to impress the boss that they’ll do anything they can, legal or not. Same for all mega corporations. It may not be the leader that’s the problem, its the climbers further down the ladder.

    Amazon is now so big it will do anything at any cost to get bigger.

  • SF3 on 10/08/2022 - 10:26
    +3

    If they are doing to add drone delivery in the future, and they know you house layout, they can drop it into the correct area for delivery. win-win. /s

  • Clear on 10/08/2022 - 10:36
    +4

    Considering I have Google Timeline enabled this would be the least of my concerns.

    • netjock on 10/08/2022 - 12:47

      Bit like Tesla drivers not daring to offend Elon just in case he wants to take control of their car.

      • Muzeeb on 10/08/2022 - 12:55

        But Elon can't even control his own cars

        • netjock on 10/08/2022 - 13:39

          Isn't that the trick? If FSD was fool proof then crashes will be a Tesla liability. If he says it still needs humans to take responsibility then blame it on human error.

          Elon doesn't want to take control of your car all the time. Just when he needs to.

  • EightImmortals on 10/08/2022 - 13:59
    +1

    Well if they sink some money into improving the range's features and offering them at the right price then I'd be tempted. Still running a roomba 640 here after a few years and it still goes well. Navigates by bumping into stuff of course but is usually finds it's way home again and I don't have to worry about it losing map layouts or it's wifi connection every 2nd day.

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