New York startup Quirky files for bankruptcy and agrees to sell its smart-home business for $15 million
It's been a rough year for the six-year-old startup, which has been trying to raise new funding for months, following several rounds of layoffs and plans to change its business model.
Founder and former CEO Ben Kaufman had previously told Fortune's Stacy Higginbotham, who first spotted the bankruptcy filing, that Quirky had about $12 million left in the bank in July, after raising about ~$170 million total.
Kaufman stepped down in August.
Now, the company will sell Wink's assets to Flextronics for $15 million, although it will hold an auction if it receives other bids. The company's blog post about the bankruptcy says that it won't impact the Wink experience for customers or current employees, who will continue to work on its line of internet of things devices.
Sources previously told Business Insider that Quirky almost sold Wink in the spring, but the would-be buyer backed out after a major malfunction of Wink's products in April.
The filing stipulates that Quirky will also sell all of its assets and is currently working with "potentially interested parties" to establish a price, with plans to have a sale close within approximately 60 days.