Embodied
The original maker of Moxie, with a history that now spans a company shutdown, a separate rights acquirer and community software.12
- Founded
- 20163
- Reported founders
- Paolo Pirjanian, Maja Matarić4
- Historical location, reported
- Pasadena, California4
Embodied built Moxie as a conversational activity companion for the home. For an existing owner or someone considering a used robot, its history has a practical consequence: the original maker, the later service operator and the community software project each have a different role. A Moxie name on the box does not settle which service that unit can use.123
From a social robot to a service transition
Toyota Ventures dates Embodied’s founding to 2016. A contemporary MobiHealthNews report identified the Pasadena, California business with founders Paolo Pirjanian and Maja Matarić, describing Pirjanian as a former iRobot chief technology officer and Matarić as a University of Southern California professor. Those are historical backgrounds, rather than evidence about the people running a later Moxie service.134
The investor’s May 2020 founder interview describes the launch of Moxie and the SocialX interaction platform. Conversation and activities were central to the product’s intended role. For families comparing connected companions, that history makes the software arrangement part of the choice alongside the physical robot.3
Axios reported Embodied’s shutdown in December 2024 after a financing round fell through. Moxie Robots, Inc. subsequently said it had acquired the Moxie rights and named Kush Taneja as its founder and chief executive. This was a separate operator, so the acquisition should not be read as evidence that Embodied resumed business. The exact acquisition terms and Embodied’s formal dissolution date remain unverified.15
The later operator’s help page carries a notice saying its Moxie server connection and subscriptions would end on June 30, 2026. At the October 26 source check, lower answers still described support and Sunlight plans. That unresolved contradiction prevents treating those older answers as a current service offer. The notice establishes an announced cutoff, not an observed result for every robot or account.1
Products and their context
Moxie is the product made by Embodied. The original OpenMoxie project is a separate software option documented by its maintainers, with its own requirements and limitations.12
Moxie
The later Moxie site says robots are no longer available for sale there. Its account and service history therefore matter when assessing a secondhand unit. Neither the original 2020 launch nor a retained subscription price establishes a new hardware offer or usable service today.13
Original OpenMoxie community software
The original jbeghtol/openmoxie project documents a computer on the same household Wi-Fi, Docker and an OpenAI account with paid credits for speech and chat. Its default setup still uses external AI services. It uses a web interface and does not include every later Moxie module. Its maintainers also warn that openmoxie.org and “2.0” are unaffiliated.2
Check the exact robot and its service
Moxie Robots says it did not receive Embodied’s user data. Its later sunset notice offered an export or deletion route before June 30, 2026, a deadline that has passed. That notice does not establish present account access or completed deletion. The later operator’s privacy notice also describes its own service, not the original OpenMoxie setup.16
A practical starting point
Before buying a used Moxie, ask which software it currently runs, whether that exact firmware can use the original community project, and who will maintain the required computer and AI account. Ask the seller to demonstrate the intended arrangement. Those answers would be more useful than assuming all Moxie units either work or have permanently stopped.12
Read more on Robots in the House
Sources and notes
- Moxie current help and sunset notice
The later operator identifies Embodied as the original maker and Moxie Robots, Inc. as a separate rights acquirer. Its June 30, 2026 sunset notice conflicts with retained support and Sunlight answers below. Those alternatives remain unresolved; no account or robot operation was tested. The data-export deadline is past. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Original OpenMoxie project
The original jbeghtol/openmoxie README documents the local computer, Docker and external AI dependencies, missing modules and unaffiliated-project warning. No setup, firmware migration or device test was performed. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Toyota Ventures founder interview
Toyota Ventures’ May 18, 2020 interview supplies the founding, portfolio and launch account. The packet recovered a search excerpt, not a full-page inspection. Investor statements are not independent product tests. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Embodied Series A report
MobiHealthNews’ June 18, 2018 report supplies the founders, historical roles, Pasadena location and USD 22 million Series A. The packet used a search excerpt. This historical round is not a cumulative total or current valuation. Includes reported information. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Embodied shutdown report
Axios’ December 10, 2024 report supplies the historical shutdown and funding-failure account. The packet used a search excerpt. It does not establish present operation of each Moxie unit. Includes reported information. Source checked 2026-10-26.
- Moxie Robots privacy notice
The notice is dated December 6, 2025 and belongs to the later Moxie Robots service. It describes data categories; it is not a policy for original OpenMoxie, proof of completed deletion or a security assessment. Source checked 2026-10-26.
We use official disclosures and other identified sources. Company claims are attributed; these profiles do not represent hands-on product testing. Our editorial and AI-use policy.