R2D2 cooks 2

Morton Hochstein
Posted: April 15, 2007

Shenzhen, China—Chefs may soon be sharing kitchen space with robotic counterparts. The first robot chef, capable of cooking some 130 preprogrammed Chinese specialties, showed off its repertoire at a recent high-tech fair here. The unit, named AIC (Artificial Intelligent Cooking) was developed over the course of four years by Pansum Technology in the Shenzhen manufacturing and research district at a cost of U.S.$2.5 million.

China's top chefs contributed recipes and cooking methods to scientists from several regional institutes as they developed the project. At the demo, a staffer inserted a box of seasoned ingredients into the refrigerator-shaped door of the AIC and punched up "Kung Pao Chicken" on the menu. After four minutes, he opened the door and handed out surprisingly appealing samples to observers.

The AIC, which is not on the market yet, "needs improvements to stabilize its performance," says inventor Liu Xinyu. "Theoretically speaking," he predicts, "AIC's potential is unlimited, and it could cook tens of thousands of dishes—Chinese, Thai, or Western food."

Their computers can recognize voice patterns, record orders, and send them by infrared to cooks in the kitchen. Like a robot carpet cleaner, the waiter robots are steered by a video camera and deftly glide around obstructions. A third robot, which can perform simple tasks such as flipping burgers and preparing omelets, is being developed. Though he enjoys the crowds the units attract to his site in a Hong Kong mall, restaurant owner Peter Chow admits there's a downside. "We in fact need more staff than normal to keep the machines going."

In yet another robotic culinary endeavor, the Japanese electronics company NEC System Technologies has developed Winebot, a robot that can distinguish smells, recognize the category of wine, and identify its components and production date via an infrared ray. A similarly equipped device has also shown an ability to recognize and distinguish between cheeses. Could they spell the demise of the "o" in sommelier?