Colin Angle

He earned a BS in electrical engineering and an MS in computer science from MIT, and worked at NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the U.S. federal agency responsible for the civilian space program, aeronautics research and space science. Established by law in 1958 and headquartered in Washington, D.C., it has run programs including Mercury, the Apollo Moon landings, the Space Shuttle, the International Space Station and Artemis.Open the full entry’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, where he helped design the behavior-controlled rovers that led to Sojourner exploring Mars in 1997.⁠[1]

The company was incorporated in California in August 1990 as IS Robotics, Inc. and reincorporated in Delaware as iRobot Corporation in December 2000.⁠[2]

A co-founder of iRobot, he became a director in October 1992, president in November 1992 and chief executive officer in June 1997.⁠[3]

On September 18, 2002, iRobot introduced the Roomba Intelligent FloorVac, calling it the first automatic floor vac available in the U.S., at a suggested retail price of $199.95. He said: “Our vision is to create products that make it possible for housekeeping to be something you do by choice.”⁠[4]

Its registration statement said that over the previous three years it had sold more than 1.2 million Roombas and more than 200 PackBot tactical robots to the U.S. military, most deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq.⁠[1]

On November 9, 2005, iRobot’s common stock began trading on the Nasdaq National Market at an initial public offering price of $24.00 per share.⁠[2]

From October 2008 he also served as chairman of iRobot’s board.⁠[3]

In September 2015 iRobot launched Roomba 980, its first cloud-connected product with mapping. He said: “With more than 14 million robots in people’s homes worldwide, iRobot is the global leader in automated home cleaning.”⁠[5]

On February 4, 2016, iRobot announced the sale of its Defense and Security business to Arlington Capital Partners for up to $45 million in total consideration, to focus on home robots. He said the sale would allow the company to “focus on our much larger Home segment.”⁠[6]

On January 30, 2019, iRobot unveiled the Terra robot mower, which needs no boundary wires. As chairman and CEO he said the company was building “an ecosystem of robots and technologies that help people do more both inside and outside of the home.”⁠[7]

On September 19, 2019, as CEO and co-founder of iRobot, he appeared on the Lex FridmanLex FridmanLex Fridman is a Soviet-born, US-raised computer scientist and podcast host who works as an MIT research scientist on human-AI interaction and autonomous driving. His Lex Fridman Podcast is known for hours-long conversations with guests including heads of state and technology leaders.Open the full entry Podcast, then called the Artificial Intelligence podcast. The episode summary said iRobot had sold more than 25 million robots to consumers, including Roomba, the Braava mopping robot and the upcoming Terra mower.⁠[8]

On August 5, 2022, AmazonAmazonAmazon is a publicly traded U.S. technology and retail company founded by Jeff Bezos in 1994, with its principal corporate offices in Seattle. Its businesses span e-commerce, logistics and fulfillment, digital advertising, membership and entertainment services, consumer electronics, and Amazon Web Services cloud computing.Open the full entry and iRobot signed a definitive merger agreement for Amazon to acquire iRobot for $61 per share in cash, a deal valued at about $1.7 billion including net debt, with him to remain CEO. He said: “I cannot think of a better place for our team to continue our mission.”⁠[9]

On July 25, 2023, the two companies cut the price from $61.00 to $51.75 per share, while iRobot took on a $200 million financing facility. He said the financing was sufficient to support operations in a “hyper competitive environment.”⁠[10]

On January 29, 2024, Amazon and iRobot announced the termination of the acquisition agreement, saying the deal had no path to regulatory approval in the European Union.⁠[11]

The same day iRobot announced a restructuring cutting about 350 jobs; he stepped down as chairman and CEO, staying on the board until his term ended in May 2024 and as a senior advisor for up to 12 months. He said: “the Board and I have mutually decided that iRobot will be better served by a new leader with turnaround experience.”⁠[12]

Soon after stepping down as iRobot’s CEO, he founded the physical AI company Familiar Machines & Magic (FM&M), which operated in stealth and recruited people including Morgan Pope of Disney Research.⁠[13]

On May 4, 2026, at The Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street JournalThe Wall Street Journal is a U.S. news publication founded in 1889, with a focus on business, finance and economics. It is published by Dow Jones, part of News Corp.Open the full entry’s Future of Everything conference, he brought FM&M out of stealth and introduced Familiars, physically embodied AI systems; the company has offices in Boston, Los Angeles and Hong Kong. He said: “The next era of robotics is not just about dexterity or humanoid form.”⁠[14]

The first Familiar is a quadruped with 23 degrees of freedom that does not currently speak. He said: “This isn’t trying to be a replacement for a real friend.”⁠[13]

As of October 2026, FM&M’s website lists him as CEO and co-founder alongside co-founders Chris Jones and Ira Renfrew, and states: “We are creating artificial life to build a more caring world.”⁠[15]

X: Public account: https://x.com/colinangle (opens in a new window)⁠[16]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Public profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/colinangle (opens in a new window)⁠[16]

iRobot: Official website: https://www.irobot.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[11]

Familiar Machines & Magic: Official website: https://www.familiarmachines.com/ (opens in a new window)⁠[14]