The robots are coming… for our beverages. In this week’s food tech news roundup, we’ve got stories about robots shaking up frozen matcha lattés, and ways to turn your roomba into a bartender. Plus a new line of kid-focused yogurt and some serious funding for an hourly workforce management tool. Enjoy!
Stella Artois unveils robot bartender
This week Stella Artois introduced the world to B.A.R.T (Bartending Automated Robotic Technology), a robotic bartender meant to serve beer and other sundries to guests in your house. Don’t get too excited — this isn’t a full-on independent robot, but an attachment meant to go on top of your robotic vacuum. Like DJ Roomba, but for beer. BART is equipped with cupholders to hold four beers (or whatever drink) at a time, and costs $19.99.
Photo: Chobani
Chobani launches new kid-friendly yogurt line
Greek yogurt giant Chobani unveiled a new line of products this week geared specifically at a demographic it had previously mostly ignored: children. Called ‘Gimmes,’ the kid-friendly products include yogurt tubes, milkshakes, and more in flavors like s’mores and cotton candy (ew). With this new line, Chobani is trying to capitalize on the healthy eating trend and capture a segment of the kid’s yogurt market which, until now, has been dominated by super sugary options.
Iced drinks are now available at our Market St location! Here’s a cold foam capp and iced matcha latte 😋 pic.twitter.com/6d15Zjqju6
— Henry (@supergeek18) November 28, 2018
Robo-Cafe adds iced drinks to beverage lineup
According to a tweet from its CEO, robotic coffeeshop Cafe X is now offering iced drinks at its Market Street location in San Francisco. As of now, we know that iced “cold foam” cappuccinos and iced matcha lattes are definitely on the menu. It’s an interesting time of year to be rolling out frozen drinks, but maybe Cafe X is just getting a head start for iced coffee season?
Deputy
Deputy snags $81 million for workforce management app
This week Deputy, whose app help manage logistics like scheduling, time management, and labor compliance for hourly workers, raised $81 million. The Australian company, which counts companies like Amazon and Uber among its clients, is taking advantage as more and more workers turn to the gig economy to supplement their income. This type of service could be especially helpful in the restaurant space: at our latest food tech meetup, Ordermark CEO Alex Canter said that tools to manage the on-demand economy for food labor was one of the things most needed in the restaurant space.
What did we miss? Tweet us @TheSpoonTech with any food tech news!
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