This really isn't up to iRobot Corporation or Colin if the company gets acquired. They are publicly traded, hostile take overs are possible. The promise is meaningless.

I'm thinking not really that big a deal.. Maybe I'm just jaded.

address-> house size mapping has been done. (I think towns keep that data for tax purposes)

name -> address is a phone book away. (If you've ever bought a property you probably got some welcome mail from companies looking to sell you things)

the address->email address/online presence might be where the new data comes out.

I worked at a company that monitored peoples and businesses power use, on a circuit by circuit basis. This can be really invasive. When my boss went on vacation, his data clearly showed that (we used his house for testing). Our CEO asked his wife why she came home early, she asked how he knew (the garage door and kitchen power... He could keep his toys but not talk about it again.). Another person was wondering if he should talk to his dog walker because he noticed that one walk was really shorter than it should be...

Our sales guys would look at a company they had meeting with roof, to figure out the size and number of AC units, before going to talk to a business.

We really have little privacy anymore.

It's actually interesting to me that they explain what they store:

"The Roomba 900 Series vacuuming robots capture mapping and navigation information via vSLAM, which stays on the robot. On all WiFi-enabled Roombas, usage data (e.g. how long did it clean, how far did it go, did it encounter any error codes, is it functioning correctly) can be sent to the cloud so it can be shown on the customer's mobile device. Images used for navigation are NOT sent to the cloud."

Have to give them props for being so specific. That being said.. still don't know if I trust them, and I am sitting with my Roomba 960 vacuuming under my feet lol

I call bullshit. Here is Reuters correction:

(This July 24 story corrects paragraph 6 to read "share maps for free with customer consent" instead of "sell maps")

"Angle told Reuters that iRobot, which made Roomba compatible with Amazon's Alexa voice assistant in March, could reach a deal to share its maps for free with customer consent to one or more of the Big Three in the next couple of years. Angle added the company could extract value from those agreements by connecting for free with as many companies as possible to make the device more useful in the home."

Glad to see the backlash. When I read the original story I thought - this seems like a good product to sell to a SWAT team. It's amusing that a company named after the book/film "I, Robot" is the one involved in this controversy.

In my opinion, the market is ripe for a privacy sensitive electronics brand. Personally, I looked into this with phones a few times but just couldn't find the right mftg partner.

"iRobot will never sell your data"

Well, then how about giving it for free because they're forced to or dutifully happy to do so? iRobot until just over one year ago built military and critical robots for the US government, police etc, then they sold the military division to a different entity, but I wonder if they still have ties with the govt.

https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2016/02/irobot-sells-off-mil...

I was actually on the market for a 960 or 980 and was just waiting for a great price.

After reading the original article where they casually suggested they'd sell photos from within my home (in the form of maps), I've scrapped the entire concept. I knew the 900 series had better mapping, but I never considered that someone would use that to invade my privacy (and that of my family).

And this article doesn't change that. You cannot put this genie back in the bottle. Now all I wonder is "when" that data would be sold, whereas before it wasn't even something on my mind.

I currently own a 700 series "bump" Roomba. I think I'll stick to "bump" navigation models without WiFi, since clearly the data will get abused.

PS - I am well aware that certain information about my home is public, such as square footage, floor layout, and so on. This is taking that one step further, by selling even the layout and type of furniture I own. Plus the Roomba uses optical cameras, so who knows how far this could go. Particularly if they just switch it on one day and make it "opt out."

I can't help but feel that privacy controversies like this are going to turn into a "boy who cried wolf" situation if we freak out anytime anyone collects the least bit of data about us. Who really cares if this company collects and/or sells mapping data of our floors? Why should I be worried if Amazon knows the distance between my couch and coffee table? Isn't our outrage better preserved for when our privacy is truly invaded?

rather "never sell directly", what about "share"? Form a new company that gains shared access to data and ... profit.

Roomba is in a very special category of machines, one able to collect indirectly samples of human tissue, drugs like cocain, etc... as part of their normal work.

Therefore the bigger trouble is not in the data that iRobot could have about your cleaning chores or the shape of your house; the real problem would be anybody with enough motivation ringing your door bell with a fake iRobot uniform and the generous offer to replace/upgrade your old roomba with a newer machine for free. Old fashioned social hacking.

You can't actually make that promise and you can't grantee the data won't leak. Anyway, the real problem is I don't want iRobot to have the data either.

Seems like we've seen this story before... 1) We don't sell your data 2) unless you give us permission 3) but to be convenient we will default it on for you 4) and sell it preemptively to "enhance" your experience 5) but don't worry someone hacked us and took it for free anyways.

Empty promises. I don't believe anything anymore, especially from heads of organizations. Perhaps if he were to back it with a contract that says if they do release my data they will pay $x, I'd believe them.

For some values of "never", "sell" and "data".

The primary issue is that iRobot has your room data in the first place. iRobot created a design that includes the ability for them to have your data, despite any costs on their end. Since there is a cost on their end, they created this system with the intention of benefiting iRobot.

Isn't the biggest question here along the lines of:

This is a little novelty device meant for neat freaks and gadgetphiles (no offense intended) who like the idea of a home robot doing a simple chore like keeping a floor clean.

Why would it need any kind of data collection at all, beyond - at most - a minimal set of local (not cloud connected) diagnostics to keep it running? Even that sounds suspect for a self-propelled vacuum cleaner.

In my opinion, which might seem quite opinionated, there are limits to the amount of data that needs to be collected to develop a successful product. Slapping some IoT features on products that don't need to have them just reeks of excessively clever over-engineering, or, possibly, an ulterior motive.

On a different note, somebody has to traffic dump those Xiaomi Mi Robots. They are very good at what they are supposed to do, but what if they have to comply with Chinese agencies by sharing image or other meaningful data?

Great they won't sell it, what about requests from the government?

https://www.socialcooling.com They might not sell the raw data, but what about derivatives?

The only way not to sell my data is not to acquire it in the first place. Anything else are false promises.

Why do they even have the data? Collecting it is fine but it has no reason to leave the robot.

Radio Shack said they would never sell their customers' data, either.

Id rather they say iRobot does not have the right to sell my data. Why did they give themselves that right in the first place if they don't plan to use it ever??

Here's a solution: 1) Promise me to pay $1 for every data point in case of a data breach 2) Run you software on my hardware. I promise not to sell you software.

How exactly do you agree to the Roomba Terms of Agreement?

How about "iRobot will never upload your data?"

Send ME your data! I promise I will never sell it!

Riiight, and bees are on strike against the HONEY!

Until Amazon, Google, Facebook, etc. buys them. :)

I'm still waiting for them to build a charging station that can empty the waste bin while it's charging.

Its good news that he regards privacy as an important factor. I wish all companies would do that...

Meanwhile, an average Android phone stores much more data about the user in the cloud ...

Until they hire the CEO from Nest

"We take the privacy of our customers seriously".

Then stop collecting the data.

what a great headline

This is really reassuring. I can't think of how a company would take advantage of my house layout, but they always find a way.

Data revolution is akin to the atom bomb for privacy.

wait, so me standing up peeing while my Roomba is working, is not a good idea?