Meet Flippy, the world's first burger-flipping robot

Artificial intelligence is poised to enter yet another aspect of your life: fast food. After years of preparation, a burger-flipping robot named Flippy made its debut on Monday at the Pasadena, California, location of the restaurant chain CaliBurger. Created by a tech startup called Miso Robotics, Flippy is the "first robotic kitchen assistant with artificial assistance."
CaliBurger is planning to install Flippy in 50 more of its locations. Each one costs about $60,000, Miso Robotics told local news station KTLA. The company has received $10 million in funding to bring Flippy to other restaurants as well, Tech Crunch reported.
If you're worried about robots taking more jobs, though, don't worry: Flippy still needs human coworkers to function, at least for now. Only once a human puts raw patties on the grill can it begin working. Equipped with thermal vision in addition to a regular camera, Flippy can detect exactly what stage of cooking the meat is at, allowing it to grill about 150 burgers in an hour, NPR reported. Once the meat is cooked, a human can add the toppings.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"This technology is not about replacing jobs," said David Zito, the CEO of Miso Robotics. Instead, CaliBurger and Miso aim to make Flippy part of an "integrated, part-robot, part human kitchen," NPR reported. Read more about Flippy at NPR.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Shivani is the editorial assistant at TheWeek.com and has previously written for StreetEasy and Mic.com. A graduate of the physics and journalism departments at NYU, Shivani currently lives in Brooklyn and spends free time cooking, watching TV, and taking too many selfies.
-
June 12 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Thursday's cartoons - due process, L.A. traffic, and more
-
Homework: Geoff Dyer brings 'a whole world' to life in his memoir
The Week Recommends Author writes about his experiences with 'humour and tenderness'
-
What happens if Israel attacks Iran?
TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Israel is 'ready to strike' and Tehran has plans for counterattacks against the US as nuclear talks appear deadlocked
-
Economists fear US inflation data less reliable
speed read The Labor Department is collecting less data for its consumer price index due to staffing shortages
-
Crypto firm Coinbase hacked, faces SEC scrutiny
Speed Read The Securities and Exchange Commission has also been investigating whether Coinbase misstated its user numbers in past disclosures
-
Starbucks baristas strike over dress code
speed read The new uniform 'puts the burden on baristas' to buy new clothes, said a Starbucks Workers United union delegate
-
Warren Buffet announces surprise retirement
speed read At the annual meeting of Berkshire Hathaway, the billionaire investor named Vice Chairman Greg Abel his replacement
-
Trump calls Amazon's Bezos over tariff display
Speed Read The president was not happy with reports that Amazon would list the added cost from tariffs alongside product prices
-
Markets notch worst quarter in years as new tariffs loom
Speed Read The S&P 500 is on track for its worst month since 2022 as investors brace for Trump's tariffs
-
Tesla Cybertrucks recalled over dislodging panels
Speed Read Almost every Cybertruck in the US has been recalled over a stainless steel panel that could fall off
-
Crafting emporium Joann is going out of business
Speed Read The 82-year-old fabric and crafts store will be closing all 800 of its stores