Pizza Robotics

Zume, a restaurant chain founded in 2015, is propelling the food industry into the future by changing the way your pizza is made. The company uses robotics and artificial intelligence to receive orders, prepare, and deliver pizzas. Robots press the dough, squirt sauce, and then a human places cheese and toppings to your liking from an online order. Perhaps most noteworthy, the AI has collected so much user data, it can predict one’s order before they’ve even completed it. Zume’s system cuts order time by up to 20 minutes through these efficiencies. The restaurant’s high efficiency can even churn out 370 pizzas an hour. SoftBank is planning to invest $750 million in Zume’s pizza robotics, setting up this company to be a contender in the pizza delivery industry. Are automated cooking services the future of the food industry? Will human touch be lost in QSR efficiency, or will it remain an integral part of modern day culture?

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Transforming Food Quality

The age of wasted produce has a sustainable light at the end of the tunnel. Apeel, a company founded on the idea of reducing produce waste in grocery stores and supermarkets around the world, is transforming food quality by  increasing the lifespan of shelf items. By using a harmless plant-based coating, it can extend the lifetime on a shelf from days to even weeks. U.S retailers lose up to $18 billion annually on lost produce that’s thrown away.  However, Apeel is looking to cut this number drastically for the years to come. For example, Apeel reduced produce waste by 60% during an initial four month pilot with a leading U.S. regional grocery chain. Apeel executives have stated they plan to grow gradually, despite so much interest from distributors nationwide. The company has also hinted at aiming to stay just within the U.S. However, talks with Peruvian distributors may have the company heading in a more globalized effort in in the future. Food companies must innovate to meet future needs of both consumers and the environment. Where will technology lead us into the future with food sustainability? Will this be a key element aiding global hunger by reducing waste?

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Merck Implementing AI

German pharmaceuticals firm Merck KGaA’s health-care division is aiming to implement a new AI augmentation process. Merck plans to implement the new process after deciding to switch to an automated supply chain system. The new system will incorporate AI and predictive analytics throughout Merck’s entire supply chain in 2019. Incorporating this type of technology is known to provide a competitive advantage in the industry. Merck already is using forms of AI to show trends, dips, and spikes across 100 products in a pilot program. In 2021, so-called AI augmentation will generate $2.9 trillion in business value and recover 6.2 billion hours of worker productivity, according to forecasts from Gartner Inc. Since the beginning of their implementation, Merck’s CIO, Alessandro de Luca, has seen nothing but positive effects. Their success had led to them to push the pendulum to a fully automated supply chain system across their 5,000 products. Is AI going to be a key element for growth in any industry in the future? Where are there areas where this technology can’t be beneficial to industries of the future?

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Walmart’s Blockchain Patent

Walmart has recently developed a new and technically advanced blockchain system. The retail behemoth has recently applied to the U.S Patents and Trademarks office for the new system. Walmart stated it will “provide a technology for running “in-field authenticating of autonomous electronic devices.” Most importantly, it will enable secure deliveries for a more efficient supply chain. Even more, the patent aims to have two separate autonomous electronic devices verify shipping and delivery methods without human assistance. Walmart has even recently deployed a blockchain “leafy greens” tracker to ensure safety in produce, and reduce E. Coli outbreaks. The entire project will change the way the retail giant ships and delivers packages globally. Therefore, Walmart’s blockchain project will cut spending and time needed to check delivery across all supply chain mediums using. Finally, Walmart has titled the patent “Systems, Devices, and Methods for In-Field Authenticating of Autonomous Robots.” Will companies fail long-term if they refuse to convert to AI supported supply chains, or is it simply an advantage?

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