UK’s Karakuri unveils world’s first robotic canteen, also secures €7.20M: Find out more about this “robo-canteen”

During the pandemic, multiple sectors have been affected, with the catering industry being one of them. Grabbing a bite outside won’t ever be the same. However, with the aim of delivering hygienic and safe food, the UK-based robotics company Karakuri has unveiled the pre-production version of its food preparing robot, the DK-One. In addition, the startup has raised a notable €7.20M in its latest investment round. 

Funding details

The latest funding of €7.20M in the company was led by firstminute capital. Other investors in the company include Hoxton Ventures, Taylor Brothers, Ocado Group and the Future Fund, which the UK government developed and is being delivered via British Business Bank. The fresh funds will be utilised to accelerate the development of Karakuri’s technologies further and create new products alongside the DK-One.

Barney Wragg, CEO and co-founder of Karakuri, says, “This is one of the most highly-anticipated stages of our business and a really important step. Now up and running, this will be the first time we can use a pre-production machine to demonstrate the DK-One’s commercial and nutritional benefits in the real world and thus demonstrate our vision for the future of food.”

Karakuri was founded back in 2018 by Barney Wragg, Simon Watt and Brent Hoberman. The robotics startup has raised a total of €14.93M funding till date with some notable investors, which are mentioned above. The startup was conceived in the Founders Factory venture studio, and it wants to manufacture “groundbreaking intelligent robotics” that are capable of revolutionising the ready-to-eat catering industry.

This robot could soon be making your meal

The newly unveiled DK-One food preparing robot is a pre-production model. It is currently being demoed for and evaluated by, customers in Karakuri’s facility in Hammersmith, London. The robot chef makes use of the latest innovation in robotics, sensing and control technologies. It is capable of making fresh hot and cold meals that are touted to maximise nutritional benefits, restaurant performance, while minimising food wastage.

In a post COVID world, eating outdoors will most likely be a cautious activity. Minimising possible contact points is a good idea, on which the DK-One aims to deliver. The robot is said to be capable of cooking personalised hot and cold meals with total control over portion size, ingredients, nutrients, calories and quantity of every meal. It also uses real-time data on ingredient usage and accurate portions size to minimise food wastage. 

Besides, the DK-One bot also enables better hygiene since it is automated and limits required human contact during food prep. It is also capable of monitoring ingredient temperatures real-time, keeping note of stocking dates and refill times. The robot is also said to be easily operable, undemanding to maintain, and capable of handling multiple food orders at the same time.

Image credits: Karakuri