Fast-food Chains Working with Startups to Bring Automation to the Kitchen

Fast-food companies are working with technology startups to incorporate more automation into their kitchens to address labor shortages and improve efficiency and productivity. One restaurant chain has an industrial robot arm with a grease-proof sleeve that slides along a rail attached to the ceiling, lifting and lowering baskets of fries. Other robots can assemble and cook food in bowls, while some pizza and taco chains are experimenting with vending machines. Other chains are using self-service ordering kiosks to automate away some customer-facing jobs and streamline processes like online ordering.