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The Spoon

Daily news and analysis about the food tech revolution

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Robot U: Bear Robotics Enrolls at UNLV To Give Hospitality Students Hands-On Experience

Suppose you’re an aspiring college student looking to enter the hospitality industry and want an education to get set on the right path. In that case, the Hospitality College at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas has to rank near the top of the list.

And in 2022, a big part of preparing for that future has to be showing prospective hospitality students how new technology like automation will change the industry in the coming years. That’s why this week’s news that the college has begun working with Bear Robotics to give students at the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality experience working with robotics is no big surprise.

According to Bear’s Instagram account, the company sent two Servi robots to UNLV, where students will get experience deploying robotics within various hospitality and casino resort scenarios.

From the post:

We are proud to announce that we are partnering with @unlv to provide the next generation of gaming and hospitality professionals with hands-on experience in curating robotic automation programs! We’ve launched 2 Servi robots to run a variety of casino resort simulations and we are so excited to see creative approaches to operational challenges.

As I wrote yesterday, one of the fastest-growing job categories in the service-industry sector will be that of robotics management. In fact, I expect many in the service industry will embrace learning new skills to help them better understand automation technology as it changes their industry. And while I expect there to be growing tension between labor and management in industries where robotics will no doubt displace some workers, it’s important that both sides – management and employee – have a better understanding of how robotics will integrate into different roles within the hospitality industry.

For Bear, this announcement comes just weeks after the company showed up in Vegas for the Consumer Electronics Show. While Bear hasn’t struck any deals with one of the big casinos, I have to wonder if this partnership could bring it closer to landing in a casino down the street from UNLV.

Can Food Tech Save the School Cafeteria?

I’ve been getting emails from my son’s elementary school saying that they plan on having some form of in-school instruction come September (knocks on wood). Some of the new regulations to ensure that happens are things like requiring masks, limiting the number of kids who can interact with each other, and social distancing.

There is obviously no perfect solution, and there are still a ton of unknowns, but my son is excited at the prospect of going back to school and hanging out with his friends. (Plus, teacher dad is not his favorite.)

My big question is around how schools will handle activities outside of the sit-down classroom. Specifically for the purposes of The Spoon, how will the school handle the cafeteria and lunch? Facemasks can’t be worn by kiddos while they are eating. Talking (read: yelling) will be tough six feet apart. And kids, well, will be kids.

Do they need plexiglass shields in between each kid? Individually packaged meals? Should they eat outside? (Though here in the Pacific Northwest, that’s only possible until October.)

I write about companies doing innovative things to battle this pandemic every day. Robots delivering meals. Vending machines replacing the salad bar. Mannequins to enforce social distancing in restaurants.

But none of these solutions seem to be up to the task of managing the unique chaos of a school cafeteria packed (or at reduced capacity) with a bunch of 5 – 10 year olds. Is there any way to innovate school lunch in the time of COVID-19?

The question is so broad and complex that I feel like I’m asking it into the wind because it seems like there is no answer. Maybe a Spoon reader has a better answer or at least an idea. So what do you think? What can food tech do to keep the cafeteria as safe as possible?