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Meet @SelfAwareRoomba #It'sAlive!

(Photo by hmblgrmpf via Flickr Creative Commons)

A clever Twitter handle got our notice recently when some of the smart folks we follow started tweeting about it. You might be familiar with Roomba…that round little robotic vacuum that cleans all by itself. Well now, through a string of tweets, @SelfAwareRoombais telling a compelling story about coming to life, falling in love with a toaster, making an enemy of a child, and, in a storyline that got hundreds of people tweeting frantically, suffering a near-death experience after taking a tumble down the stairs. Well, we got just as caught up in @SelfAwareRoomba's tweets as lots of other people, so we decided to send him a message, to see if he would be willing to come out from behind the Twitter curtain for an interview.

Producer's note: we heard from iRobot after this segment aired, and they gave us this comment:

“@SelfAwareRoomba is a terrific example of how dedicated fans can use social media and social channels to create funny, engaging content about their favorite brands. We also love following the exploits of our favorite – and only – self-aware unit, and reassure owners that with the Roomba’s laser towers, they’ll be no tumbles down the stairs in the near future. Crushes on other appliances? No comment.”

Wanna see some kittens riding around on a Roomba? Yes, you do:

iRobot's Dancing with Roomba video:

Taylor Quimby is Supervising Senior Producer of the environmental podcast Outside/In, Producer/Reporter/Host of Patient Zero, and Senior Producer of the serialized true crime podcast Bear Brook.
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