'Sometimes it doesn't work out': Calgary tech community reacts to ATTAbotics insolvency
Long considered a highlight of Calgary's tech scene, local robotics company ATTAbotics is now restructuring as it deals with insolvency.
That restructuring includes terminating 192 of its 203 employees, keeping only 11 as it navigates the road ahead, according to documents published by insolvency trustee firm Richter Inc.
Founded in 2016 by Scott Gravelle, ATTAbotics had carved a name out for itself not only in Calgary but internationally, working with the likes of Microsoft, Accenture and the United States Department of Defense.
Neither Gravelle nor ATTAbotics responded to requests for comment ahead of publication. Several terminated employees declined interview requests.
The company's financial troubles came as "sad news" to Terry Rock, president and CEO of tech hub Platform Calgary.
"It's always surprising when a company that has something so cool doesn't make it for whatever reason," he told CBC News.
ATTAbotics designed a robotics supply chain management system in which robots store and grab warehoused goods, with the goal being to boost shipping efficiency and streamline warehouse operations.
The concept was a hit with funders: by the end of 2022, ATTAbotics had received over $200 million, including over $97 million in funding led by Export Development Canada along with the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan Board in 2022, $34 million through the federal government's Strategic Innovation Fund in 2020, and $4.5 million from the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund in 2018.
Documents published by Richter say that ATTAbotics, "as an early-stage technology company, has never achieved profitable operations," with annual losses of $49.5 million in 2024 and $43 million the year prior.
As of March 31 this year, the assets of ATTAbotics are valued at $31.6 million, while its total liabilities are approximately $73.8 million, according to the documents.
On July 2, ATTAbotics filed a notice of intention to make a proposal under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act, which gives the organization time to figure out its restructuring plan and come up with a proposal for creditors.
The company's 11 remaining employees are considered essential to the company's restructuring, according to the Richter documents.
A longtime promoter of Calgary's innovation scene, Rock said the city's tech sector growth comes with both wins and losses.
"In the world of technology innovation, these people are taking big risks," he said. "They're trying to change the world with what they're doing, really exciting ideas and technologies, and sometimes it doesn't work out."
According to its website, ATTAbotics at one time had over 300 employees.
Former employee discusses 'challenges' at company
Former ATTAbotics project manager Andrew Rockwell, who left in 2024 after nearly six years, told CBC News that there had been "internal struggles" at the company.
"There were ongoing challenges at the company in kind of getting out of that startup status and commercializing the product that ATTAbotics was making," he said.
"I kind of felt that the momentum forward was slowing. We were having a hard time getting off the ground."
He said he was "really proud" of his work at ATTAbotics, adding that he made sure to keep in touch with former colleagues.
"Seeing how things played out, I guess I'm glad I left when I did," he said. "But it still is a sad thing for me, even as an outsider now, to be seeing what's happened to the company."
Rockwell hopes the employees that were let go are able to continue contributing to the city's tech scene.
"I would love to see all of those excellent people land other great jobs here in Calgary … working happily here in the city, supporting a tech industry in the city," he said.
He also hopes that the ATTAbotics technology "can rise from these ashes," especially to continue supporting customers that utilized it.
ATTAbotics has about 150 granted and pending patent applications worldwide.
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