Food tech market emerges as IT firms' new battleground

The food technology market is set to become the new battleground for tech giants and startups as they race to develop the world's most customized and innovative food-serving technologies.

At CES 2024 next month IT firms will showcase their state-of-the-art food tech products designed to grab a bigger share of the food tech market forecast to grow to $342 billion by 2027. Some 74 food tech companies will set up exhibition booths at the event.

The products to be unveiled at the tech show include refrigerators and induction appliances using artificial intelligence, cooking robots and portable microwave ovens.

FOOD ECOSYSTEM

Samsung Electronics said on Wednesday that it will showcase a food ecosystem based on AI technology at CES 2024 to be held in Las Vegas next month.

At the world’s largest tech show, it will also unveil its 2024 bespoke refrigerators “Family Hub Plus” and “Anyplace Induction” for the first time.

Family Hub uses an AI camera inside the refrigerator to recognize the type of food ingredients and when they are put in and taken out, providing information to users. For example, it records when vegetables, fruits and eggs arrive in the refrigerator and notifies customers when the expiration date is imminent.

The 32-inch touch screen installed on the right door of the refrigerator allows users to watch YouTube and Netflix while eating or cooking, as well as play high-performance games through the touch screen.

“Samsung Food,” a food app from Samsung Electronics, uses an internal AI camera to identify ingredients stored in the refrigerator and recommends dishes or recipes incorporating them. Recipes appear on the refrigerator touch screen and smartphone screen.

SMART AI AGENT

LG Electronics will unveil “Smart Home AI Agent,” a small two-wheeled home appliance robot.

A display is installed on the front of the product. This product uses autonomous driving technology to travel around the house and control unnecessary home appliances.

When the customer returns home from outside, they are greeted at the front door and welcomed like a pet. It detects the customer's emotions through their voice and facial expressions and recommends and plays music that matches the mood.

Doosan Robotics Inc., an affiliate of Doosan Group, will introduce cocktail robots and other products at CES 2024. This robot analyzes people's facial expressions using AI and prepares cocktails according to their mood.

FOOD PRINTING TECHNOLOGY

Startups from South Korea and other countries will unveil technologies for customized and healthy cooking.

Toptable, a domestic food tech startup, will exhibit its four-dimensional (4D) food printing system “Ink” at CES 2024.

Ink is an individualized nutritional delivery system that sets not only texture, size, and nutritional content, but also the melting point within the human body. The 4D food printing technology received a Best Innovations Award in the CES 2024 Food and AgTech category.

Nuvilab is unveiling its newly designed third-generation AI food scanner and app for patients with complications from chronic diabetic.

Suvie, a US startup, will showcase a kitchen robot that helps prepare meals and a meal kit delivery service. Rise Gardens will present innovation award-winning hydroponic cultivation solutions.

Yo-kai Express, based in the US and Japan, is exhibiting an unmanned restaurant platform that cooks ramen on the spot.

Wiltex, a Japanese textile and electronics company, will introduce the microwave bag “Wilcook,” weighing just 300 grams. The bag will cook food, applying heat of 90 to 130 degrees.

The food tech market is rapdily growing. According to the US-based Consumer Technology Association, the world’s food tech market is projected to expand to $342 billion by 2027.


Write to Ik-Hwan Kim and Ran Huh at lovepen@hankyung.com
 

Yeonhee Kim edited this article.