Current:Home > MarketsChipotle testing a robot, dubbed "Autocado," that makes guacamole-DB Wealth Institute B2 Expert Reviews
Chipotle testing a robot, dubbed "Autocado," that makes guacamole
View Date:2024-12-23 18:47:52
Chipotle Mexican Grill's new robot can make guacamole in half the time human workers need to prepare the dish, the restaurant chain said in unveiling the device on Wednesday.
The so-called Autocado is designed to handle the labor-intensive task of preparing the avocados, slicing, coring and peeling 25 pounds of the fruit at once. By comparison, it takes employees about 50 minutes to prepare a batch of guac, according to Chipotle. Human workers will continue to apply the finishing touches, such as adding other ingredients and mixing them together, the company said.
Chipotle is using the Autocado at its test kitchen in California. The company didn't say if the machine would eventually be introduced in its roughly 3,200 locations worldwide.
"The intensive labor of cutting, coring and scooping avocados could be relieved with Autocado, but we still maintain the essential culinary experience of hand mashing and hand preparing the guacamole to our exacting standards," Curt Garner, Chipotle's chief customer and technology officer, said in a statement.
Autocado, created by robotics and automation firm Vebu Labs of California with collaboration from Chipotle, stacks a group of avocados vertically then removes their skin and core. The remaining flesh is dropped into a stainless steel bowl that a Chipotle worker takes and uses as the base for a batch of guacamole.
Vebu CEO Buck Jordan said in a statement that its technology can help create Chipotle's guacamole "more efficiently than ever before." Vebu also said it wants to improve Autocado by using artificial intelligence to teach the machine to evaluate the ripeness of avocados.
Chipotle is also testing the use of robotics for making its tortilla chips. The robotic kitchen assistant called Chippy debuted last year at a location in California.
Other restaurants are also increasingly turning to robotics and AI and robotics to cut down on routine tasks. Restaurant chain Sweetgreen opened a kitchen in the Chicago suburb of Naperville earlier this year that uses AI to make salads. The location is still staffed by humans, who put the finishing touches on the order.
CKE Restaurants, which owns Carl's Jr. and Hardee's, said in May that it's using AI called Tori at the drive-thru to take orders, while McDonald's is using similar technology at some of its drive-thrus.
Chipotle's stock price was flat Wednesday afternoon, trading at $2,070 a share.
- In:
- Robot
- Chipotle
Khristopher J. Brooks is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering business, consumer and financial stories that range from economic inequality and housing issues to bankruptcies and the business of sports.
TwitterveryGood! (8881)
Related
- Deion Sanders says he would prevent Shedeur Sanders from going to wrong team in NFL draft
- Kate Spade 24-Hour Flash Deal: Get This $330 Bucket Bag for Just $79
- 90 Day Fiancé: Love in Paradise Trailer: Meet the Couples Looking to Make Love Last
- Natalie Portman Shares How She Talks to Her Kids About Injustice
- Voters in Oakland oust Mayor Sheng Thao just 2 years into her term
- Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman's Daughter Bella Shows Off Hair Transformation in Rare Selfie
- Russia claims to repel invasion from Ukraine as 9-year-old girl, 2 others killed in latest attack on Kyiv
- This Pink Concealer Has Gone Viral on TikTok and It Has 121,400+ 5-Star Reviews: Here's Why You Need It
- Shawn Mendes Confesses He and Camila Cabello Are No Longer the Closest
- CIA Director William Burns secretly met with Chinese counterpart in Beijing last month
Ranking
- Caitlin Clark's gold Nike golf shoes turn heads at The Annika LPGA pro-am
- What Spring 2023 Handbag Trend You Are Based On Your Zodiac Sign
- Expecto Intense Feelings Reading Tom Felton's Tribute to Harry Potter Star Robbie Coltrane
- Pink Gives Glimpse Into Her Imperfect Love With “Muse” Carey Hart at 2023 iHeartRadio Awards
- Why Amanda Seyfried Traded Living in Hollywood for Life on a Farm in Upstate New York
- As China raids U.S. businesses and arrests workers, the corporate landscape is getting very risky
- Henry Kissinger, revered and reviled former U.S. diplomat, turns 100
- Gabriel Basso's Transformation From Child Star to The Night Agent Has the Internet Shook
Recommendation
-
NFL playoff picture Week 10: Lions stay out in front of loaded NFC field
-
Russian spy whale surfaces off Sweden, leaving experts to question his mission, and his hormones
-
Snorkeler survives crocodile attack by prying its jaws off of his head
-
How Kieran Culkin Felt About Macaulay Culkin's Home Alone Fame
-
Democratic state leaders prepare for a tougher time countering Trump in his second term
-
Charli D’Amelio and Landon Barker Share Sweet Glimpse Inside Their Relationship
-
Vanderpump Rules’ Tom Sandoval Shares His Regrets About Affair With Raquel Leviss
-
The Fate of The Night Agent Revealed