Sweetgreen salad chain acquires Spyce and its robotic kitchen technology

Salad chain Sweetgreen announced Tuesday it has acquired Spyce, a Boston-based restaurant company that has made a name for itself with its automated kitchen.

Since its founding in 2015, Spyce has raised $ 24.88 million from investors, including celebrity chef Daniel Boulud, according to Pitchbook. The company’s robotic kitchen and conveyor belts are able to cook and serve its hot bowls and salads without any human intervention. Spyce has two restaurants, both in Boston.

The acquisition is expected to be finalized in the third quarter of this year. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Sweetgreen said he is determining where and how he will integrate Spyce’s technology into his own restaurants. The company said the deal was aimed at improving the customer experience by filling orders faster and more accurately and giving its employees more time to focus on food preparation.

The deal follows Sweetgreen’s decision in June to file a confidential initial public offering. Ownership of Spyce’s technology could make Sweetgreen more attractive to investors as it seeks to enter public markets. Rising labor costs have put pressure on profits across the restaurant industry, prompting companies to invest in automation and artificial intelligence technology to take care of tasks. simpler. For example, McDonald’s bought Apprente in 2019 and recently began testing software to take drive-thru lane controls at select Chicago restaurants.

Sweetgreen’s latest funding round earlier this year valued it at nearly $ 1.8 billion after the coronavirus pandemic spurred massive growth in its digital sales. Because it is still a private company, it does not disclose its financial results.