Zume Pizza lands $48 million in funding for robotic pizza delivery

Greg Nichols for ZDNet:  A robotics startup called Zume Pizza, which is automating en route pizza production, has raised nearly $50 million in venture funding.

Why so much money for a company automating pizza production and delivery? Because if successful, it will change the way fast food operates by increasing speed and freshness while reducing a significant portion of labor costs.

That's especially important in the restaurant industry. Food costs are going down, which is good news for fast food companies, but labor costs have been rising steadily. The cost of labor as a percentage of sales rose .8 percent in 2016, according to the consulting firm BDO.

Since fast food relies on low-skill, repeatable tasks, it's the perfect use-case for automation. That's led to a rush of innovation in food service.

The New York Times recently profiled a salad-making robot named Sally, which is made by Chowbotics. The company says its robot eliminates the unsanitary elements of the ubiquitous salad bar.  Full Article:

Comments (0)

This post does not have any comments. Be the first to leave a comment below.


Post A Comment

You must be logged in before you can post a comment. Login now.

Featured Product

Helios™2 Ray Time-of-Flight Camera Designed for Unmatched Performance in Outdoor Lighting Conditions

Helios™2 Ray Time-of-Flight Camera Designed for Unmatched Performance in Outdoor Lighting Conditions

The Helios2 Ray camera is powered by Sony's DepthSense IMX556PLR ToF image sensor and is specifically engineered for exceptional performance in challenging outdoor lighting environments. Equipped with 940nm VCSEL laser diodes, the Helios2 Ray generates real-time 3D point clouds, even in direct sunlight, making it suitable for a wide range of outdoor applications. The Helios2 Ray offers the same IP67 and Factory Tough™ design as the standard Helios2 camera featuring a 640 x 480 depth resolution at distances of up to 8.3 meters and a frame rate of 30 fps.