Lily

About Lily

Lily Robotics, Inc. emerged from the UC Berkeley robotics lab in 2013, founded by Antoine Balaresque and Henry Bradlow. The venture was inspired by Balaresque's personal experience of his mother being absent from family photos because she was always the one taking them. This led to the concept of a self-flying camera drone that could autonomously follow its user. The company's core product, the Lily Camera, was designed to be exceptionally user-friendly; users could simply toss it into the air to initiate flight and it would track a wearable GPS device. This waterproof drone was intended to capture 1080p video and 12-megapixel stills, targeting outdoor enthusiasts and individuals who were not experienced drone pilots.

The business model was centered on direct-to-consumer pre-sales. A promotional video released in May 2015 went viral, showcasing the drone's purported ease of use and autonomous capabilities, which led to a massive influx of interest. The company secured approximately $34 million in revenue from about 60,000 pre-orders and also raised $16 million in venture capital from investors including Spark Capital and SV Angel. However, the initial marketing materials proved to be a significant point of contention. Subsequent lawsuits filed by the San Francisco District Attorney alleged that the promotional video was deceptive, using professional drones like the DJI Inspire and GoPro cameras to achieve the advertised footage, a fact that was not disclosed to consumers.

Despite the considerable initial funding and pre-order revenue, Lily Robotics faced insurmountable challenges in bringing its product to mass production. The company struggled with engineering hurdles, underestimating the complexity of turning their prototype into a reliable, mass-producible product. Production deadlines were repeatedly pushed back from an initial February 2016 release to the summer of 2016, and then to 2017, but the company never shipped a single unit to its customers. In January 2017, Lily Robotics announced it was shutting down, unable to secure the additional financing needed for manufacturing. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February 2017, owing $34 million to its pre-order customers who were eventually promised refunds. Following the bankruptcy, the Lily brand and assets were acquired by Mota Group in May 2017, which later released a different product under the "Lily Next-Gen" name.