Dubai's first robot chef 'Flippy' is coming to a mall near you

Robotic arm to churn out fries and wings at Dubai Mall after deal with major franchise operator

Miso Robotics' Flippy 2 cooking chicken wings. The company highlights that the device can work in narrow spaces and without breaks. All photos: Miso Robotics

Flippy can perform several tasks, including tossing fries in a deep fat fryer and flipping burgers.

With a starting price of $3,000, the robot may appeal to fast-food outlets trying to cut costs. Here, Flippy deep fries onion rings.

Wimpy in Dubai Mall will be the first restaurant in the Americana franchise to get the robot.

Flippy 2's grabby hand.

A series of codes and stickers help the robot to identify different foodstuffs.

Flippy 2 at work.

Restaurants in the UAE will soon have robot chefs preparing meals for customers.

Americana Restaurants, which operates Pizza Hut, KFC and Hardees in the Middle East and North Africa, has teamed up with Miso Robotics to bring machine employees into the workforce.

The robotics company will test its Flippy 2, a robotic arm that uses machine learning and artificial intelligence, at the Wimpy restaurant in Dubai Mall.

It does not get tired, take breaks or sweat into the dishes it prepares, nor can it suffer an injury.

This will be the first phase of the agreement, with expansion planned across other Americana restaurants in the coming months.

Melvin Michael, brand director of Wimpy, said the move will help the restaurant keep up with the latest market trends.

“Americana Restaurants’ partnership with Miso Robotics marks a significant milestone for the company as we strive to address shifting customer behaviours and preferences through innovative technological solutions,” he said.

Flippy 2 is a customisable robot that can perform a range of cooking tasks automatically in fast-food restaurants.

Using machine learning and AI vision, it can also work an entire fry station, helping to create a more efficient work environment.

Many US restaurants are installing the new robot arm to produce food faster.

American chain White Castle is reportedly installing 100 Flippy 2 machines, which will be able to fry items and flip burgers.

The restaurant has already tried out the initial version of the robot, after teaming up with Miso Robotics in 2020.

Mike Bell, chief executive of Miso Robotics, said the company wants to make its services global.

“In the past year, we’ve announced partnerships with some of the largest brands in the US, and that momentum has led to us being pulled internationally to introduce our technology on a global scale,” he said.

“Americana Restaurants’ push to scale robotics in their operations is a testament to their superb operating capability in the MENA region.

“This is a true partnership that we see blossoming for many years to come and we wanted to make sure the market was right for future deployment at additional locations. The time is now to take Flippy global, and we have a great partner to do it with.”

Automation has quickly become popular in the restaurant and service industry over the past couple of years.

As well as being able to finish more tasks quicker than ever, robots also help restaurants reduce labour costs.

A 2020 report by restaurant consulting firm Aaron Allen and Associates showed that more than 80 per cent of restaurant jobs, including cooking, serving and preparation, could potentially be taken over by automation.

Meet seven robots putting a human face on a high-tech revolution — in pictures

Han is super expressive. Unveiled to the public in 2015, he can also read emotions like Sophia. Photo: Hanson Robotics

Shaped like a human, Ameca is genderless. Seventeen motors control its life-like movements and expressions. It has cameras in its eyes that allow a person to speak remotely to the people interacting with it. Photo: Engineered Arts

In 2017, Bina48 was the first robot to complete a philosophy course at California’s Notre Dame de Namur University. Photo: Hanson Robotics

Nikola, an android child, has skin made of silicone and a face that can express six emotions – happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise and disgust. Photo: Riken Japan

This robot head is called Adran and is a type of Mesmer, a system that helps build realistic humanoids that are cost-effective. Footage of this robot moving its head, yawning and smiling went viral last year. Photo: Engineered Arts

Sophia is perhaps the most viral robot there is. Since her debut in 2016, the humanoid has travelled around the world, entertaining people with her witty comments, facial expressions and movement. Reuters

Sophia's advanced artificial intelligence allows her to hold a real conversation with humans. She can recognise human faces, see emotional expressions and recognise hand gestures. Antonie Robertson / The National

Before Han and Sophia, there was Philip K Dick. He is a humanoid lookalike of sci-fi author Philip K Dick, who died in 1982. Photo: Hanson Robotics