CONNECTING ROBOTS WITH HUMANS
Macco Robotics is a startup that has set out to connect robots with people by creating products that transform society.
As a member of our newest Deeptech Accelerator cohort, we have had the privilege to chat with CEO Victor Martin and CTO Kishhanth Renganathan about the role robots will play in the food & beverage industry, how Covid has accelerated the need for safe and contact-less solutions and what we can expect in the new normal.https://www.youtube.com/embed/v-ZGm35j3hU?feature=oembed
Tell us about Macco Robotics.
Macco Robotics is a Foodtech company focusing on creating new opportunities and solving problems in the hospitality sector through the use of AI-based robotic solutions. We are a global company headquartered in Spain and with offices spread across India, USA and Singapore. We design and develop custom robots for Food & Beverage service verticals and we currently have 3 main products: Kime, Cart and Dibo.
Kime
Cart
Dibo
A humanoid kiosk that can prepare and serve food & beverages to consumers directly. The kiosk is highly modular in design and can serve up to 10 items in less than a 3×3-metre space. The robot has Business software integrated such as ERP, sales tracking and point of sale, which enables any f&b business to operate automated.
Automated and autonomous platform that can prepare and serve food & beverages on the move. The Cart can serve up to 2 items in less than a 1×1-metre space and comes with integrated business software needs.
Mobile Robot platform made for high traffic zones such as restaurants and events for automated service. The Robot is modular and currently comes with two modules, food delivery and disinfection. Macco will release new modules continuously focussed on hospitality sector needs.
Why are robots a good fit for the food and beverage sector?
Food is a basic human need and regardless of any crisis it requires innovation in many aspects. The preparation process, foodservice experience and quantifying the nutrition in the food we consume has become essential for the next generation of customers. Naturally, with increased awareness and interest comes the need for innovation in the hospitality sector. Can food be customised to the extent of choosing raw nutritions or just flavours? Can we make the food preparation process completely contact-free? How does it look to be served by Tech? Will big data play a role in food optimisation? These and many more questions led us to go deep into the world of food and beverages with Robots.
How do you see Robots in the food sector helping beyond just following repetitive and manual tasks?
Macco has always focused on creating Robots as a tool for enhancing the cooking experience, and food & beverage service factors. The main value proposition of these robots in the food & beverage sector is standardisation, customisation and personalisation. They may look contradictory but as of today, providing customised food options to the mass population in a standardised manner was/is not possible due to the complex operation process and cost involved. Robots can make it possible, and that’s what we at Macco are doing.
Robotics in new normal?
Post-Covid, robotics will play an accelerated role in our daily life in various sectors but in the hospitality industry, the transition is happening as we speak. We’re already seeing fresh food vending machines, robots serving at restaurants and having robots cook your meals. The transition became obvious during the crisis and investors are accelerating the development within this sector. The opinion of robots just replacing a job is beginning to change with fresh perspectives of contactless safe food, customisations, healthy and even 3d printed f&b products. Most of all, sustainability is of high importance in the food sector and robots are beginning to help achieve this goal.
We’re excited to have you on our Deeptech Accelerator. Why is Asia an attractive market to you?
Macco already has a strong presence in Europe and the US, but Asia has always been welcoming with robots in the hospitality sector. The Asian market sees robotics-based innovations as attractive establishments and Singapore is quickly establishing itself as an important technology hub. We aim to grow into the Asian market through Singapore by mid-2021.
What is the one advice you’d like to give to other startup founders?
Patience and resilience are key to being a founder or working in a startup. You need to be prepared that everything is not going to pan out as strategised and surprises are to be expected for good or for bad as we move further to reach the vision. Keep your vision stable and be flexible on your short term tasks as you will face a lot of distractions and competition to deviate you from your path, but remember the purpose and why you created the startup – and hold on to it.
Finally, how do you think robots will play a role in our everyday lives in the future?
Everyday cooking should become a creative space and not boring or repetitive work. We have come far from making fire with stones and hunting fish with arrows for our survival, and now we will move from here to future and say, “we used to cook all by ourselves, manually and performing all repetitive and tedious jobs”. Robots will become an essential tool in the kitchen to have a healthy diet for humans in this fast-paced digitised world and we will make it happen one step at a time. Our future generations will look at robots the way we look at an oven, toaster or cooker in our kitchens today.https://www.youtube.com/embed/Q7S1T1cmnkw?feature=oembed
