Caring for your yard takes dedication year-round—clearing heavy snow in winter, mowing lawns in summer, and managing leaves in autumn. These tasks are time-consuming, labor-intensive, and often physically demanding.
That’s where the Yarbo story begins. Founded in 2015 by Allen Huang, Yarbo International Inc. emerged from a vision to make yard care smarter, simpler, and safer. Huang and his team set out to develop the world’s first autonomous, all-in-one yard maintenance robot—a single system that could replace multiple machines while giving homeowners back their time.
Table of Contents:
The Founding Story: A Vision Born from Harsh Winters
In many parts of North America, winter brings heavy snowfall, creating a recurring challenge for homeowners—clearing snow form driveways, sidewalks, and yards.
Shoveling snow is not only exhausting but can also be dangerous, leading to injuries and health risks, especially for older individuals.
Recognizing these problem, Allen Huang, a robotics engineer with a passion for automation, envisioned a machine that could handle snow removal independently. With this goal in mind, he founded Yarbo in 2015 and began researching autonomous robotics solutions.
In North America’s severe winters, shoveling snow is both exhausting and risky. As a robotics engineer, Allen Huang saw an opportunity to solve this with automation. His early prototypes were designed to remove snow autonomously—laying the foundation for the Yarbo snow blower.
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Financial Struggles – The company had no immediate revenue as it focused entirely on research and development.
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Technical Barriers – Creating an AI-powered, autonomous outdoor robot required overcoming complex engineering problems.
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Harsh Testing Conditions – The team tested prototypes in extreme cold, often working in temperatures as low as -30°C to refine performance.
Despite these difficulties early on in the yarbo story, the team remained committed. Over six years, Yarbo developed and tested six generations of prototypes, constantly improving performance, navigation, and durability.
2021: The Breakthrough – Introducing Snowbot S1
After years of research and testing, a bold decision was made to overhaul our technical approach and redesign our product from the ground up to truly meet user needs.
That’s when Yarbo introduced Snowbot S1 in 2021, marking a significant milestone in the industry. Snowbot S1 was the world’s first autonomous residential snow blower, designed specifically for home use.
And as Thomas Edison says "The value of an idea lies in the use of it".
The Snowbot S1 filled a gap in the market, was an incredibly innovative and modern solution to a very common homeowner problem around the world, it quickly gained recognition.
Key Features of Snowbot S1
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AI-driven Navigation – Enabled the robot to detect and clear snow efficiently.
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Tank-like Treads – Allowed it to move seamlessly over icy and uneven terrain.
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Two-Stage Snow Blower – Handled snow depths of up to 12 inches (30 cm) with precision.
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Smart Obstacle Detection – Ensured safety by detecting objects in its path.
Snowbot S1 filled a crucial gap in the market, earning recognition for its innovative approach to home snow removal. However, the Yarbo team saw an even greater opportunity through user story—why stop at snow removal when they could create an all-in-one yard care solution
2022: The Birth of Yarbo – A Fully Modular Yard Robot
Building on the success of Snowbot, Yarbo underwent a major transformation in 2022. Instead of focusing solely on winter maintenance, the company rebranded and introduced a revolutionary concept: a modular smart yard robot that could handle outdoor maintenance in every season a key turning point in the Yarbo Story.
The New Yarbo System Features:
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Interchangeable Modules – One robotic platform that could switch between a snow blower, lawn mower, and leaf blower.
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Smart AI Technology – Advanced sensors and GPS navigation for precise operation.
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Wireless Connectivity – Remote control and scheduling via a smartphone app.
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Effortless Operation – Fully autonomous, reducing manual labor for homeowners.
Thus, in 2022, Yarbo redefined yard care with a modular smart yard robot. This next-generation system used one robotic core compatible with multiple attachments:
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Yarbo Lawn Mower Module – Keeps grass perfectly trimmed with AI precision.
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Yarbo Snow Blower Module – Handles deep snow with intelligent path planning.
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Yarbo Leaf Blower Module – Clears debris efficiently across seasons.
Each module connected wirelessly, offering fully autonomous operation and app-based control.
A Record-Breaking Kickstarter Campaign
To bring this vision to life, Yarbo launched a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign in September 2022. The response was overwhelming—the campaign raised $3.45 million, making it the highest-funded consumer robotics project on Kickstarter at the time.
This success validated the demand for an all-in-one robotic yard maintenance solution, proving that homeowners were eager to invest in smart technology to simplify outdoor chores.
2023: Expansion, Funding, and Global Recognition
Following the crowdfunding success, Yarbo raised $14.5 million in pre-Series A funding and gained global traction.
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CES 2023: Won the Innovation Award in Smart Home/Robotics.
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2024: Introduced the Yarbo Snow Blower S1 Plus and a new Yarbo Core, enhancing modular compatibility.
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Awards: Received multiple iF Design Awards for outstanding engineering and product design.
Yarbo also expanded into Europe, showcasing at major events like spoga+gafa and Equip Exposition.
2023: Expansion, Funding, and Global Recognition
Following the success of Kickstarter, Yarbo continued to gain momentum. In early 2023, Yarbo secured over $14.5 million in pre-Series A funding, accelerating production and expansion into new markets.
At CES 2023, Yarbo made its industry debut, winning a CES Innovation Award in the Smart Home/Robotics category. By mid-2023, the company began fulfilling pre-orders, shipping the first units to customers worldwide.
2024: Achievements and Innovation at the Next Level
Building on its previous success, Yarbo received multiple iF Design Awards in 2024, recognizing its exceptional engineering and design.
As part of its global expansion, Yarbo entered the European market and showcased its products at major trade events like Equip Exposition and spoga+gafa.
At CES 2025, Yarbo received Best in Show honors from The Ambient. Looking forward, the company plans continues to push boundaries more innovative and useful add on for smart yard care.
Yarbo is committed to continuous innovation, ensuring that its products not only maintain yards but also enhance outdoor living experiences, through feedback from Yarbo user story.
Overcoming Challenges: The Road to Success
As they say "The road to success is not a straight", developing the world’s first modular yard robot came with immense challenges. Yarbo had to:
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Build an Entirely New Market – No precedent existed for such a product.
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Test in Extreme Conditions – Working in harsh climates to perfect reliability.
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Iterate Constantly – Using real-world feedback to refine and improve the system.
Despite these obstacles, Yarbo has become a leader in outdoor automation, offering homeowners a revolutionary way to maintain their yards effortlessly.
Conclusion: The Future of Smart Yard Care
At Yarbo, our evolution has always been guided by our users. Every software and hardware update, feature enhancement, and product iteration stems from real feedback and real experiences shared by our community. We actively listen to the challenges homeowners face and continuously refine our robots to make yard care simpler, smarter, and more enjoyable.
This user-driven approach ensures that every improvement—whether in navigation precision, connectivity, or performance is made with one goal in mind: to deliver the most seamless and satisfying experience possible. From the first Snowbot prototype to today’s award-winning Yarbo modular system, the Yarbo story is one of vision, persistence, and purpose.
With products like the Yarbo snow blower and Yarbo lawn mower, Yarbo is shaping a future where yard maintenance is fully automated, eco-friendly, and intelligently connected.
For users around the world, Yarbo represents more than technology it’s a lifestyle upgrade for smarter, simpler outdoor living.
FAQs
1. What is the Yarbo story?
The Yarbo story is about how Yarbo evolved from a snow-clearing robot concept into a fully modular yard-care system that includes the Yarbo snow blower, Yarbo lawn mower, and other smart modules powered by AI and automation.
2.Who founded Yarbo?
Yarbo was founded in 2015 by Allen Huang, a robotics engineer who wanted to simplify outdoor maintenance through autonomous technology.
3.What makes Yarbo different from other yard robots?
Yarbo’s innovation lies in its modular design one robotic base that connects to multiple attachments, such as the Yarbo lawn mower, Yarbo snow blower, and leaf blower, all controlled through one app.
4.How does the Yarbo lawn mower work?
The Yarbo lawn mower uses AI-powered navigation, GPS mapping, and RTK precision to autonomously mow your lawn without boundary wires. It ensures clean cuts and even patterns with minimal user input.
5.What are the features of the Yarbo snow blower?
The Yarbo snow blower module clears up to 16 inches of snow, uses tank-like treads for traction, and employs smart sensors for obstacle detection—perfect for cold, uneven terrain.
6.When was the Yarbo snow blower first launched?
The first autonomous model, Snowbot S1, debuted in 2021, marking the world’s first residential snow blower robot. Yarbo later upgraded it to the Snow Blower S1 Plus in 2024.
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