- Doordash has acquired Chowbotics for an undisclosed amount.
- Chowbotics is a salad-making robot startup.
- The acquisition of Chowbotics raises interesting questions about the post-pandemic plans for DoorDash.
The companies announced Monday that DoorDash has acquired salad-making robot startup Chowbotics. But all DoorDash employees have become the Chowbotics team, and the business will operate within DoorDash independently. The Fresh Food Robot’s creator, Chowbotics, has become part of the team at DoorDash. Chowbotics, with its flagship robot, makes healthy, customized meals available 24/7. Within a 3’X3 ‘space, this innovative and leading technology generates customizable salads, grain and poke bowls, parfaits, cereals, and snacks. Inaccurately dispensing a wide range of natural ingredients that exhibit an ever-changing range of physical properties (e.g., weight, size, shape, and consistency), there is tremendous complexity, and Chowbotics addresses this through sophisticated robotics.
While salad bars, vending machines, and even automats may sound familiar, Chowbotics has successfully built and marketed a product that, at the touch of a button, offers made-to-order fresh meals. And not only is it theoretical. In hundreds of locations, including universities, hospitals, and grocery stores, Chowbotics has deployed its product. This has allowed access to healthy and hygienic meals with fresh ingredients for students, front-line workers, and everyday shoppers. The level of autonomy, accessibility, and customization offered to consumers by Chowbotics is proven and unmatched.
Chowbotics’ expansion
What most excites us about Chowbotics is that a remarkable tool has been developed by the team that will allow DoorDash merchants to grow. This tool can help merchants expand their current menu offerings as part of the DoorDash platform, as well as reach new customers in new markets without investing in an entirely new store. At DoorDash, when they want to grow their business, we strive to become a merchant’s first call. The addition of the capabilities of Chowbotics enables us to improve our wide range of merchant services, including customer acquisition, on-demand delivery, insights and analytics, and fulfillment of white label orders, and in a more cost-effective manner.
Chowbotics was founded in 2014. It can create customizable salads, grain and poke bowls, parfaits, cereals, and snacks all within a small space with its fresh food robot Sally, a rectangular machine that is essentially a salad vending machine. Businesses like universities, hospitals, and grocery stores use the robot.
Doordash’s plan to grow post-pandemic
DoorDash currently has the largest share, about 48 percent of the US food delivery market. The restaurants closed in-person dining due to the pandemic in 2020. Its revenue skyrocketed and customers relied on delivery services. But when DoorDash went public late last year, some analysts criticized its IPO as lacking in value. They questioned how DoorDash would be able to continue to grow if once the pandemic is over and demand for food delivery subsides.
The acquisition of Chowbotics raises interesting questions about the post-pandemic plans for DoorDash. Chowbotics will allow DoorDash to help expand its offerings to the restaurants that use its delivery platform. It seems likely that the vending machines of Chowbotics would fit into the ghost kitchen model. DoorDash has a California ghost kitchen facility. It was working as part of its Reopen for Delivery initiative with Chicago restaurant Krazy Hog.
