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What goes around, comes around. Dad used to talk about the automats in NYC when I was a kid.
I remember eating at a Horn & Hardart automat near Grand Central in NYC a few times when I was a little kid. I thought it was very cool.
About 20 years ago, I was in Osaka, away from the English-language-friendly area at lunchtime. Found a sushi bar that had this trolley/conveyor that cruised by the seats at the bar. You grabbed the plate with what you wanted, then brought the plates to the register when you were done and they rang you up. All the Japanese I needed to know was "Asahi," and I ate with practically no human contact.
About 20 years ago, I was in Osaka, away from the English-language-friendly area at lunchtime. Found a sushi bar that had this trolley/conveyor that cruised by the seats at the bar. You grabbed the plate with what you wanted, then brought the plates to the register when you were done and they rang you up. All the Japanese I needed to know was "Asahi," and I ate with practically no human contact.
Domino's pizza delivery robot is hot and autonomous Lance Ulanoff, March 18 2016
Domino's, thy name is innovation.
Just months after announcing a pizza delivery truck with built-in heaters, the pizza purveyor is upping the ante with the world's first pizza delivery robot.
The company's Australian arm announced plans to deploy a Domino Robotic Unit (DRU). Essentially an autonomous vehicle, DRU can, according to Domino's, follow a map, navigate sidewalks, avoid obstacles and keep your pizza hot and fresh while delivering it to your front door.
It will even come bearing cold drinks.
While this sounds like an elaborate marketing stunt, a Domino's spokesperson confirmed to Mashable that the robot is real.
“DRU is cheeky and endearing and we are confident that one day he will become an integral part of the Domino’s family. He’s a road to the future and one that we are very excited about exploring further,” said Domino’s Group CEO and Managing Director Don Meij in a release.
Domino's reports it has been secretly testing the four-wheeled robot vehicle on the streets of Queensland, Australia, where it acquired the necessary permissions to operate the autonomous vehicle from the Queensland Department of Transport and Main Roads.
“The DRU prototype is only the first step in our research and development as we continue to develop a range of innovations set to revolutionize the entire pizza-ordering experience,” said Meij in the release.
DRU was built for Domino's by Australian defense robot company Marathon Robotics, a firm which, up to now, has primarily built autonomous "moving targets" for defense and law enforcement to use in target practice. So if customers start shooting at DRU, it's probably prepared.
In a brief release on its work for Domino's, the company notes, "We remain committed to the defense and law enforcement market, and look forward to applying our technology and our near-decade of experience of robots operating in challenging real-world environments to new markets."
While Domino's hasn't said where we'll see DRU next (it would have to pass regulatory hurdles wherever it operates), Marathon Robotics reports it has unveiled the autonomous pizza truck in Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, France, the Netherlands, Japan and Germany.
Two big questions remain: When is it coming to one of the world's biggest pizza markets, the U.S.A., and — more importantly — when a robot delivers your pizza, do you have to tip it?
at least there's a better chance a machine can line the patty up with the bun...
It's obviously in the prototype stage, and not capable of assembling meat-based sammiches yet, but Bistrobot a real thing that's been deployed to a real bodega:
Given that we already have Pizzabot and Pancakebot in wide deployment, it looks like the machines are finally winning.
So the question becomes, how to fund the coming deficit in welfare and related social services?
I fully expect some whiny SJW group to demand a special tax on FoodBots in the near future, to defray the costs associated with providing state benefits to talentless people who can no longer get paid $15 an hour to spit in my food. I also predict I'll be referring back to this post in a few years as an "I told you so" moment.
In a move meant to offset higher minimum wages taking effect in states across the country, fast-food giant Wendy’s will be offering self-serve kiosks to many of its franchisees later this year.
Though some reports suggested the kiosks would be made available at all Wendy’s by the end of 2016, spokesperson Bob Bertini says it will be up to individual franchisees whether or not they install the kiosks.
Below, the statement from Wendy’s in full:
The majority of Wendy’s restaurants are franchise-operated. We are in pilot now with self-service order kiosks, which we expect to make available for installation by our franchisees later in 2016. Whether they choose to do so will be up to them. Earlier news reports were not quite accurate. We did not say kiosks would be available at every restaurant by end of year. We do continue to invest in technology to help mitigate the inflation we are seeing on the wage front.
In the back kitchen of Mountain View's newest pizzeria, Marta works tirelessly, spreading marinara sauce on uncooked pies. She doesn’t complain, takes no breaks, and has never needed a sick day. She works for free.
The pizza I had in Sorrento was hands down the best I've ever had:
That's because the sale of firearms (including rifles / shotguns) and ammunition in Italy is restricted to those who hold a valid license, and all ammunition sales are reported to the government.
Maybe the fact that you were inches away from the actual birthplace of the proper pizza was. I should've known, I have a killer pizza place in Naples. I still have the box somewhere from 10 years ago when I took it back home on the plane.
I had a very interesting interaction a few days ago while in Chicago.
I'd been on the road all day, and was rushing from one realtor appointment to another. I was hungry, it was lunchtime, and so I popped into a McDonald's, something I haven't done in many years.
I quickly selected what appeared to be the most inoffensive item on the menu, a quarter-pounder deluxe. The hamburger which I was presented with was, to my surprise, not merely tasty but also very well-assembled. The presentation out of the box actually looked like something you'd see in an advertisement. The lettuce was crisp and whole, the tomato and onion slices were neatly arranged, and the overall alignment of the burger was perfect.
This merited a response, and so after finishing my meal, I went back up to the counter, showed my receipt, and said that I wanted to compliment whomever had prepared my order. The lady I spoke to (shift-manager type) seemed literally unable to process this concept. She began by asking me what was wrong, if I wanted a refund, etc. I assured her, no, there was absolutely no problem at all, that I was exceedingly pleased with the quality and presentation of the hamburger I'd been given, and that I merely desired that said gratitude be passed along to whatever person had prepared this meal for me.
Even towards the end of the conversation, I still got the feeling that she didn't know exactly how to deal with this request, and was able only to point me towards a web address printed on the receipt whereupon I could complete a survey and receive a two-for-one coupon good for a free Egg McMuffin. I again assured her that I did not desire a free Egg McMuffin, and simply wished to convey, in as direct a fashion as possible, the general sentiment to one specific individual in the kitchen that their work was both recognized and appreciated, and yet I didn't get the feeling that this action was likely to result from our conversation, having been again pointed towards the survey-and-muffin section of the receipt.
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