Was Kuri the only home robot to fail in 2018?

No — 2018 saw multiple home robot failures. Jibo was acquired and its servers shut down. Anki declared bankruptcy in 2019. The entire consumer home robot category failed that year as it became clear the technology was not mature enough for the use cases promised at the $500-$700 price points.

← All autopsies

// HALL OF FLAME · STARTUP AUTOPSY

Founded	2015
Closed	2018
Country	USA
Sector	Hardware
Total raised	0
Collapse type	Silent Shutdown
Founder	Mike Beebe, Kaijen Hsiao

Kuri (Mayfield Robotics)

"A $700 home robot that smiled and filmed your family — cancelled two weeks before shipping."

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RAISED

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EMPLOYEES

MONTHS

timingSilent Shutdown

Quiet closure with no public announcement

// Fatal mistake: Bosch shut down Mayfield Robotics before first unit shipped — corporate strategy change killed product

Key Events Timeline

2015-01

FOUNDING

Mayfield Robotics founded in January 2015 as a subsidiary of Bosch to develop consumer home robots.

2016-12

PRODUCT LAUNCH

Kuri robot unveiled at CES 2017 in December 2016, showcasing its ability to recognize family members, patrol the home, play music, and capture video.

2017-01

FUNDING

Kuri received strong consumer interest at CES 2017 in January, accumulating pre-orders at a retail price of $699 per unit.

2017-09

PRODUCT LAUNCH

Mayfield Robotics began taking pre-orders for Kuri in September 2017, accumulating approximately 1,000 confirmed orders with deposits collected.

2018-01

PRODUCT LAUNCH

Kuri was prominently featured at CES 2018 in January, with Mayfield Robotics announcing a planned shipping date for mid-2018 to fulfill its 1,000 pre-orders.

2018-07

SHUTDOWN

Bosch shut down Mayfield Robotics in July 2018, cancelling all approximately 1,000 Kuri pre-orders, refunding deposits, and dissolving the entire team just as the robot was ready to ship.

🔥 Hall of Flame 42%🏆 Hall of Fame 32%

Mayfield Robotics (a Bosch subsidiary) built Kuri, a cute home robot that could recognize family members, patrol the house, play music, and capture videos.

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// THE HARDWARE GRAVEYARD DOESN'T END HERE

Kuri (Mayfield Robotics) followed a documented pattern. Identify the same signals in any company before they reach the point of no return.

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