(14 Sep 2016) FRESHLY BAKED PIZZA, STRAIGHT OUT OF THE OVEN, READY FOR DELIVERY.
BUT THIS PIZZA WASN'T MADE BY HUMANS ALONE. ROBOTS HAD A HAND IN IT TOO.
THIS SILICON VALLEY STARTUP IS USING INTELLIGENT MACHINES TO GRAB A SLICE OF THE PIZZA-DELIVERY BUSINESS.
SOUNDBITE: Julia Collins, Zume CEO and co-founder:
"We automate those repetitive tasks, so that we can spend more money on higher quality ingredients . There will always be a model here at Zume where robots and humans work together to create delicious food."
ZUME PIZZA IS ONE OF A GROWING NUMBER OF TECH FIRMS SEEKING TO DISRUPT THE RESTAURANT INDUSTRY WITH SOFTWARE AND ROBOTS.
HERE ROBOTS ADD THE SAUCE -- SPREAD IT -- AND PUT PIES IN THE OVEN.
THE STARTUP WILL SOON ADD ROBOTS TO PREP THE DOUGH -- ADD CHEESE AND TOPPINGS -- TAKE PIZZAS OUT OF THE OVEN -- CUT THEM INTO SLICES -- AND PUT THEM IN BOXES.
SOUNDBITE: Alex Garden, Zume co-founder and chairman
"And we're going to free up people to do things that are higher value. There's going to be amazing new ways of working that don't exist yet that are going to be created."
ZUME SAYS ITS BIGGEST INNOVATION IS INSIDE THIS DELIVERY TRUCK. IT HAS 56 OVENS TO BAKE THE PIZZAS EN ROUTE TO ITS CUSTOMERS, STARTING THIS FALL.
THE STARTUP WANTS TO SHORTEN DELIVERY TIMES WITH SOFTWARE TO ANTICIPATE WHEN AND WHAT KIND OF PIZZAS CUSTOMERS WILL ORDER.
SOUNDBITE: Alex Garden, Zume Pizza co-founder
"When they place their order, their pizzas could arrive piping fresh in as little as five minutes, and that's pretty cool."
SOUNDBITE: Charity Suzuki, Zume pizza customer
"It's delicious. It's always hot and fresh when it comes ... I can't tell the difference that it's made with a robot rather than a human."
BUT SAN FRANCISCO-BASED BISTROBOT LIKES ITS CUSTOMERS KNOWING THEIR SANDWICHES WERE MADE BY A MACHINE.
SOUNDBITE: Jay Reppert, Bistrobot co-founder
"And it has all the other advantages where it's quicker, it's cheaper, it's more consistent and it's this really fun experience to share with people."
EXPERTS SAY MORE AUTOMATION IS COMING TO RESTAURANT KITCHENS, BUT ROBOTS STILL STRUGGLE WITH IRREGULAR TASKS THAT REQUIRE FINE MOTOR SKILLS.
SOUNDBITE: Ken Goldberg, UC Berkeley Automation Lab director:
"We're making progress, but it's still a challenge, so I want to reassure restaurant workers that the skills that they have are still going to be of value."
ONE THING ROBOTS CAN'T DO? SAVOR A GOOD SLICE OF PIZZA.
TERRY CHEA, ASSOCIATED PRESS, MOUNTAIN VIEW, CALIFORNIA
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