The news comes as a surprise, given that things seemed to be going well for Anki. Since its launch in 2010, the startup has raised more than $200 million in venture capital. Its main products Cozmo and Vector seemed to be successes. Vector launched last fall after a $2 million Kickstarter campaign, and most recently, it received Alexa integration. And Cozmo has been credited with teaching kids to code. The only shadow of a doubt seemed to be that the devices appeared more like toys than the advanced, AI-based robots that they were. Still, Microsoft, Amazon and Comcast had reportedly expressed interest in acquiring the company.

Anki told Engadget it pursued every financial avenue to fund its future product development and that management continues to explore all options available. In the meantime, employees will receive one week of severance pay, and we may have to bid farewell to the robot pals that had a kind of Pixar-like spunk and wit.

You can read Anki's full statement below: