iRobot Corp. (NASDAQ: IRBT), a leader in consumer robots, announced that Faris Habbaba will become its executive vice president and chief research and development officer (CRDO) effective June 7. Overseeing iRobot's talented, global R&D organization, Faris will drive advanced research and technology development to support product roadmaps and the company's leadership position. Faris will report directly to iRobot's chairman and CEO Colin Angle.

Advances in artificial intelligence, home understanding and machine vision technologies are essential to defining the iRobot Experience for consumers. iRobot's Genius Home Intelligence Platform, alongside breakthroughs in technology and design, has enabled iRobot's expanding portfolio to be tightly integrated into a customer's lifestyle and clean with unprecedented levels of thoughtfulness, reliability, control and support.

Faris most recently served as vice president of engineering at Zebra Technologies, leading a team of over 1,000 software and hardware engineers across several global design centers. His primary responsibilities at Zebra Technologies included driving innovation and enabling record growth through the scaling of software and hardware solutions. Prior to Zebra Technologies, Faris held numerous engineering, product, supply chain and business leadership roles at Motorola Solutions in North America and EMEA. This included serving as head of development engineering with the company's Enterprise Mobile Computing division, senior director of EMEA Supply Chain and senior director of Global Product Management.  

"With a background that spans engineering, product, sales and supply chain, Faris brings an extremely well-rounded view to the role of Chief R&D Officer," said Colin Angle, chairman and CEO of iRobot. "He has a proven track record of bridging the gap between software and hardware, working collaboratively across business functions and bringing connected products to market on a global scale. We are excited to welcome Faris to the iRobot team."

"With robots continuing to play a larger role in maintaining a cleaner and healthier home, iRobot is making a difference in people's lives every day," said Faris Habbaba. "While the company has sold more than 30 million robots worldwide and has an installed base of nearly 11 million connected customers, the market is still nascent and the opportunities for growth are vast. I'm honored to join the team and look forward to leveraging innovative technologies that will enable us to deliver new products and experiences that delight customers in the years ahead."

About iRobot Corporation

iRobot, the leading global consumer robot company, designs and builds robots that empower people to do more both inside and outside of the home. iRobot created the home robot cleaning category with the introduction of its Roomba® Robot Vacuum in 2002. Today, iRobot is a global enterprise that has sold more than 30 million robots worldwide. iRobot's product line, including the Roomba and the Braava® family of mopping robots, feature proprietary technologies and advanced concepts in cleaning, mapping and navigation. iRobot engineers are building an ecosystem of robots and technologies to enable the smart home. For more information about iRobot, please visit www.irobot.com.

For iRobot Investors

Certain statements made in this press release that are not based on historical information are forward-looking statements which are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. This press release contains express or implied forward-looking statements relating to iRobot Corporation's expectations concerning the maturation of the Company's markets and opportunities for growth. These statements are neither promises nor guarantees, but are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in these forward-looking statements. Existing and prospective investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date hereof. iRobot undertakes no obligation to update or revise the information contained in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or circumstances or otherwise. For additional disclosure regarding these and other risks faced by iRobot, see the disclosure contained in our public filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission including, without limitation, our most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K.