The technology has been tested at multiple restaurants with positive results. McDonald’s revealed Wednesday that it’s turning to IBM to accelerate the growth of its automated voice-ordering technology. As part of the agreement, IBM will acquire McD Tech Labs, which was formed following the burger chain’s 2019 acquisition of Apprente, a leader in voice-based, conversational… read more

Cisco will announce on Tuesday that it’s getting into the hologram business. At its WebexOne customer conference, it’ll describe a new service called Webex Hologram, which enables virtual meetings in augmented reality—with the participants represented as photorealistic holograms instead of cartoon-like avatars. I got an early look at the new service and spoke to two… read more

Headquartered in Montgomery, Illinois, KBI has provided beverage equipment such as fountain dispensers, brewers, and water filters to commercial customers for over 35 years. The company also specializes in equipment services such as installation and preventive maintenance. KBI has over 30 branches and over 300 trained technicians across the US, with offices located in Michigan,… read more

McDonald’s Corp. set a new target to cut global greenhouse gas emissions to net-zero by 2050, from the beef in its burgers to the light bulbs in its restaurants. The burger chain also said it was working with the nonprofit Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) to revamp its existing climate change targets. It aims to… read more

The Thai restaurant is using robots to run between the dining room and kitchen at its locations in Minneapolis and Maple Grove.  Sawatdee, the Upper Midwest’s first Thai restaurant that’s now in its second generation of family ownership, now appears to be the first restaurant in Minnesota to put robots in the dining room. And… read more

Electrolux Professional has entered into an agreement to acquire Unified Brands Inc and related assets, a leading US-based manufacturer of foodservice equipment. The acquisition will significantly strengthen Electrolux Professional’s presence in the US and supports Electrolux Professional’s focus on growth with the foodservice chains. Electrolux Professional will acquire Unified Brands for approximately SEK 2,140m (USD… read more

Based in Corona, Calif., the company manufactures ranges, fryers, ovens, countertop equipment and other specialty cooking products for the commercial kitchen. Imperial has annual revenues of approximately $40 million. “Imperial is a leading, highly-respected commercial foodservice brand with products that complement the existing Middleby core cooking category. While we are enhancing our current brand portfolio,… read more