Torquing Group, the company behind the collapsed Zano mini-drone project on Kickstarter that raised an amount equivalent to $3.5 million, posted an apology on the project's campaign page to its 12,000 backers.
Upon the collapse of the Zano project, the funds that the backers pledged were also wiped out. The posted apology attempted to explain what went wrong and how the pledged funds were used by the company.
Torquing started off the post by apologizing for the lack of communication from the project's team following the previous statement, wherein the company revealed the shutdown of the Zano project amid resignation among executives and massive delays to the drone's production.
The company added that it is proceeding with the aftermath of the project's collapse with the best of intentions, and to prove its transparency, described how the funds raised by the campaign as provided by the backers have been spent.
According to a pie chart posted by the company, the biggest expense was into stock and manufacturing, where 46 percent of the funds was used. The next biggest expenses were wages, which took 14 percent, purchase taxes, which took nine percent, and Kickstarter and payment fees, which took five percent.
"We strongly refute any allegations made that may suggest that the board of directors have misappropriated any funds," the post also said.
To explain what happened, the company said that during the campaign, several upgrades to the drone were implemented into the design, which caused additional technical difficulties to a project that was already complex. The upgrades, along with other delays, led to massive impacts on the financial aspect and the timeline of the Zano project.
The company also explained that significant investments were made during the later stages of development to improve the performance of the drone, as the upgrades added weight to the drone that impacted its flight time. The company was forced to procure bigger propellers and lighter materials for the drone.
Once the project moved into volume production, the basic calibration between hardware and software that were successful in prototypes encountered unforeseen issues. The company found it difficult to properly calibrate large volumes of the Zano drone, and along with shipping delays and additional costs, forced the board to shut down the project.
"We would like to make a sincere apology for the understandable disappointment felt by all of those that have supported the project," the company said, thanking the backers for their support of the Zano project.
The statement, however, does not mention any possibility that the funds pledged by the backers will beced, highlighting the risk associated with crowdfunding campaigns.
