Key Points

  • Robot startup Foundation has failed to pay employees since missing its Oct. 30 payroll, angering some workers after its CEO borrowed $4.6 million from the firm last year to buy a luxury home, according to people familiar with the matter.
  • CEO and co-founder Sankaet Pathak is Foundation's sole board member, raising governance concerns among prospective investors.
  • Foundation's widely reported $24 million in Pentagon contracts actually stems from its 2024 acquisition of Boardwalk Robotics, which held some existing government research contracts, the people said.
  • Pathak's previous company, Synapse, collapsed in 2024, leaving thousands of customers without access to deposits. Pathak reportedly took loans from Synapse as it neared bankruptcy.
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[–] 4 points 1 hour ago* (last edited 1 hour ago)

I know not everyone has lots of choices for jobs. But the people working in that field should. And they need to vote with their feet. Don't work for shitty companies if you have a choice. Once it got bought, it was time to leave.

Edit: It is possible the employees had golden handcuffs after the purchase. If so, I don't blame them. I know a guy who worked at a startup that got bought. For a few years he was making 3x his salary. Staying was actually sucking money away from the company as there was no way he was producing enough to be worth that pay. So he stayed until that ran it's course and then left.

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