Packed RoboNexus Ushers in 'Age of Robotics'

Attendance at 1st Time Event Exceeds 10,000
Standing Room Only Crowds Witness Robotic Technology From Around the World

NORTHBORO, Mass. and FRAMINGHAM, Mass. - Oct. 27, 2004 - Robotics Trends and IDG World Expo today announced that RoboNexus, the international consumer, educational and business development event for personal, service and mobile robotics (http://www.robonexus.com), was a resounding success, drawing more than 10,000 enthusiastic attendees to the largest new technology event launched in 2004. The conference and exposition was held at the Santa Clara Convention Center, Santa Clara, CA on October 21-23, 2004.

According to Dan Kara, conference chairman and president of Robotics Trends, "The success of the inaugural RoboNexus event is just one more indication that we are witnessing the birth of a completely new technology sector -intelligent, mobile robotics. This market has both business-to-business and consumer components to it, a point that was driven home by the wide variety of RoboNexus attendee types - investment and business development professionals, educators and academics, professional and hobbyist robot developers, representatives of Global 200 organizations, and robotics enthusiasts and consumers, to say nothing of the massive media attention the event received. It is clear that intelligent, mobile robotics has entered onto a growth curve similar to that which the PC, the mobile telephone and the Internet have experienced in past years. Our current plan for RoboNexus is to double the size of the venue for next Fall's Santa Clara event and to expand into other geographic sectors in the US and globally."

"As Founding Sponsor of RoboNexus, iRobot is very pleased with the response of the business and consumer communities to the event," said Helen Greiner, Co-founder and Chairman of the Board, iRobot. "RoboNexus proved to be an outstanding opportunity to build a community around the robotics industry and to showcase the latest robotic innovations from around the world. The success of RoboNexus, continuing strong sales in iRobot's' Government and Industrial divisions, coupled with the fact that iRobot has sold over 1 million Roombas to date, including selling out of Roombas at RoboNexus, is a clear indication that the commercial robotics market as a whole has arrived and is poised for dramatic growth."

According to Eliot Weinman, CEO of Trendsmedia, the parent company of Robotics Trends and co-founder of the company, "RoboNexus 2004 represents the results of over a year of focused research and media coverage into the emerging robotics marketplace by Robotics Trends. Robotics Trends has now established itself as the premier integrated media firm focused on the rapidly expanding personal and intelligent mobile robotics marketplace. As an integrated media firm, Robotics Trends now has the leading content website on robotics, Robotics Trends (www.roboticstrends.com), which averages 350,000 page views per month. It also produces the Emerging Robotics Technologies & Applications Conference (ERT 2005) each spring in Cambridge, MA which is focused on the commercialization of robotics technologies. ERT 2005 is scheduled for May 10-11, 2005."

RoboNexus is produced in collaboration with IDG World Expo, the leading producer of world-class tradeshows, conferences and events for technology markets. IDG World Expo President, David Korse notes, "We have a longstanding history of recognizing emerging technology markets poised for rapid growth and serving those markets through IDG World Expo events. IDG World Expo, in conjunction with our partners at Robotics Trends, views intelligent, mobile robots and robotic technology as a major new technology market and RoboNexus as one of the seminal events in the development of that market."

About Robotics Trends
Robotics Trends is the world’s first integrated media firm serving the burgeoning personal, service and mobile robotics marketplace. Robotics Trends serves their clientele through three major business divisions:
• Publishing, which produces Robotics Trends (www.roboticstrends.com), an online magazine launched in October 2003, which averages 350,000 page views monthly;
• Events, which produces RoboNexus and the Emerging Robotics Technologies & Applications Conference; and
• Analyst Services, which serves the strategic consulting needs of leading emerging robotics manufacturers.

About IDG World Expo
IDG World Expo (www.idgworldexpo.com) produces technology-focused tradeshows, conferences and events for professionals seeking world-class education, peer-to-peer networking and one-stop comparison shopping. As the leading technology event management company, IDG World Expo leverages its experience and knowledge of technology-focused events and conferences, enabling technology companies to capture the attention and loyalty of influential buyers. IDG World Expo's portfolio of conferences and events includes Macworld Conference & Expo®, LinuxWorld Conference & Expo®, Bio-IT World Conference + ExpoTM, Health-IT World Conference + ExpoTM, Portable Power Conference & ExpoTM, and Wireless Sensing SolutionsTM and RoboNexus. IDG World Expo is a business unit of IDG, the world's leading technology media, research and event company.

About IDG
International Data Group (IDG) is the world's leading technology media, research, and event company. A privately-held company, IDG publishes more than 300 magazines and newspapers including Bio-IT World, CIO, CSO, Computerworld, GamePro, InfoWorld, Network World, and PC World. The company features the largest network of technology-specific Web sites with more than 400 around the world. IDG is also a leading producer of more than 170 computer-related events worldwide including LinuxWorld Conference & Expo®, Macworld Conference & Expo®, DEMO®, and IDC Directions. IDC provides global market research and advice through offices in 50 countries. Company information is available at http://www.idg.com.

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