Patty-cooking robotics startup Aniai completes seed funding

Aniai Inc., a foodservice robotics developer founded by a South Korean, said on Feb. 21 it has attracted $3 million via a seed funding round to boost its business in the US.

The sponsors include Korean venture capital firms Capstone Partners and Lotte Ventures and a US investment manager, the startup said.

Founded in 2020, Aniai is developing artificial intelligence-powered robots that grill burger patties or dispense sauce in restaurants, as well as a cloud system for kitchen operations and food quality control.

Its robot Alpha Grill cooks a maximum of 200 burger patties an hour, based on preset temperature and thickness. The robot can control the taste and quality of the patty via a vision sensor, which captures the image and provides details of the meat.

It enhances the efficiency of kitchen operations and saves labor costs, Aniai said.

Aniai has been supplying Alpha Grill to Cry Cheese Burger, a local handmade burger chain, since last year and is set to accelerate its business in the US, the world’s largest hamburger market.

The startup, in cooperation with the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) and Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce in New York, has demonstrated its robots at US restaurant chain Abe’s Corner.

It will also join the National Restaurant Association Show in May, a premier trade event of the global foodservice industry, to accelerate its global business.

The startup is headquartered in San Jose, California and runs an office at Seoul National University. CEO Hwang Gun-pil, who researched bats' ultrasonic sensors for application to smart factories, founded the startup with AI and robotics scientists.

Write to Lan Heo at why@hankyung.com


Jihyun Kim edited this article.