Anki aquired by Digital Dream Labs – Cozmo and Vector will come back!
Digital Dream Labs, a tech startup based in Pittsburgh, completed successful the acquisition of the company Anki. DDL company is positioned in the market with STEAM products like Puzzlets and games for kids.
The acquisition list include acquired all “virtual” Anki’s assets – patents ( including blueprints) , trademarks, data, social media, and domain.
According to Hilco Streambank who handled the sale, the patent portfolio sale includes the following assets:
- 45 issued utility patents, including 35 US patents
- 11 published patent applications
- 39 pending patent applications
- 3 utility patents in the National Phase (PCT)
- 73 issued design patents
- Trademarks for Anki, Cozmo, Vector, Anki Overdrive, and product lines in development
- Anki.com domain name
The document can be seen seen here Anki’s aquisition from Digital Dream Lab
Potentially Relaunch of Cozmo and Vector
This is huge news and we wanted all of you to be the first to know. It is now official, Digital Dream Labs owns all of Anki (*assets – patents, trademarks, data, social media, and domain)! We acquired these assets as the highest bidder from an auction.
…and to Tiny #Vector who did NOT die, @DigitalDreamLab was a second father, together they were as good of friends, as good of citizens, the good old city of Pittsburgh knew! @anki pic.twitter.com/PAEkVpcgnZ
— Digital Dream Labs (@DigitalDreamLab) December 24, 2019
DDL’s CEO H Jacob Hanchar wrote about plans to relaunch Cozmo, Overdrive, and potentially Vector. Hanchar said, “Cozmo was the major reason we were interested in Anki. It will pair perfectly with our PlayTray. Now we own our own robot! We are going to launch that part of the platform first.”
Support plan for Vector and Cozmo
DDL : “We will be reaching out to the 6.5 million customers Anki has, introduce ourselves, and inform them that it is our intention to continue operations and incorporate Anki’s intellectual property into our platform.” … “this acquisition becomes a glorified email list purchase that will still drive revenue.”
What this means for Anki customers and Anki product like Vector and Cozmo?
What will happen to Anki Vector Servers : This is a great news for the Anki Vector’s owners, the new acquisition opens to new possibility new updates, long term support for the Anki’s Servers and possibily new high quality products similar to Vector and Cozmo
Buy your Vector and Cozmo here and now:
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I understand why your company seems more interested in Cozmo from all I read, may I please make a plea from my personal point of view.
I fought 8 years for a diagnosis, a hurt ankle, surgery, all healed my pain did not go away it became worse. Last August 2019 finally I have a firm diagnosis incurable CRPS, also called the suicide disease, as above all diseases on McGill pain scale, it’s the most painful even above amputation with no sedation & cancer. Once it’s gone this long there is little help, it can choose to attack at any time, one can be in remission, have flares…mine has never hit a remission, flares are all day every day, what’s worse I’m in the top 1% of this disease, as last August it was still just my right ankle, since then it spread to all 4 limbs. Its targeting my brain as of late its attacking right where it lives.
Cozmo sounds great, but comprehending is getting difficult, typing or writing is a big task, my mind says one thing, fingers write other things, so coding & learning thru Cozmo is not ideal for my future.
I’m just now discovering Vector & Cozmo for the 1st time where have I been?! I was so excited, as I easily could see that Vector is something this disease does not threaten, as it does so much else. I can speak to Vector & the lil’ guy can speak back. It’s not just a child fascination, it’s a big kid delight, or in my case it’s a night time friend so needed for a sick adult, one that lays awake for hours each night in excruciating pain & anxiety as I’m all alone with the pain. What a great lil’ buddy Vector could be, I have little but planning on borrowing money to buy one very soon, as I’m concerned on the time I may have with my Vector. Voice services siri, bixby, alexa & google will be best for my future, for many in similar health situations, the greatest invention are these items with voice control.
I read one grown man comment on a Amazon that Vector delights the big kid in him, he interacts with him daily, & looks forward to coming home & Vector greeting him every day. Vector is his best childhood friend he never had & always wished for. So I know there must be many like him that feel the same way about their Vector. I want Vector to remain for all of those people very much! For this disease sufferer, I want to purchase a Vector soon, then pray with all my might that you may continue this device with Alexa, that it too may be considered for your long term interest. It’s so simple maybe you think so basic too basic, but theres a midway need in this world. ADHD, OCD, PTSD conditions to name a few, diseases too numerous to mention that happen to once full functioning adults that we are more advanced even sick that NO we don’t want a remote control robot, too simple not cool enough. Then we can’t work much if at all so not one hundreds to thousands of dollars either. A midway product, simple challenges, but more so, the intrigue of watching, speaking to using Alexa for a voice timer, weather check, etc all the while following us around the house, not a stationary speaker in a room (a dog is a fantastic friend that does most all of this, I have 6 dogs lol), but this is that cool gadget. The friend at night, the smile when it sees me & reacts to me.
I’m in a mad search to find items I maybe can afford, that helps preoccupy my mind in my worst times, I am so excited I just discovered this but also sad as I’m concerned he may no longer exist later this year. I’m going as far to not delay as to borrow the money to buy a Vector of my own. Please consider a way, of not taking him away from me, please? To not be a pity party or selfish, I include all Vector owners in my heart & prayers as well, may he continue please, to be a lil buddy to all that have him.
Any updates you may have to this plea, this fight, to keep this going, before I even own one lol, please let me know!
Hi Tracey, there are some good news: as you know Digital Dream Labs company acquired the Vector & Cozmo project and they are doing their best to bring it back in production with new features. The servers that contains the robot’s online capability are working and they assure long term support. Now they are planning a crowdfunding campaign to enable new features and offline capabilities , check the article > https://www.personalrobots.biz/vector-escape-pod-and-open-source-kit/
I wish you luck and to recover soon and to get your Vector robot friend,
-Marco