An army of robot baristas could mean the end of Starbucks as we know it

[Alan C.]

An army of robot baristas could mean the end of Starbucks as we know it 

Starbucks’ 95,000 baristas have a competitor. It doesn’t need sleep. It’s precise in a way that a human could never be. It requires no training. It can’t quit. It has memorized every one of its customers’ orders. There’s never a line for its perfectly turned-out drinks.

 

It doesn’t require health insurance.

 

It also can't sue.

[Lowe D]

It's not going to smile at me, though.

[Guest Exceptionalist]

Yeah, but da overpriced beverages are a thing of the past. Opposed to the fair trade subsidairy.

[ribuck]

Lol, someone invents a fancy coffee machine and gets lots of PR by spinning it as being comparable to a barista.

[nathanm]

I've next-to-never bought coffee at a dedicated store myself, so what's the benefit of human-prepared coffee?  I mean, I've seen the thing where people make art designs with the cream and obviously that's not as automatable, but the coffee part seems fairly scientific and quantifiable.  (But then you might say the same applies to chefs, and now you're gonna get yourself in big trouble)

 

I'm not 100% sold on the idea of self-checkout, (e.g. Wal-Mart, Home Depot) but I do like it sometimes.  If you have a ton of stuff in your cart, because of a Global Access Abundance or otherwise, it starts to feel like you're working for the store instead of the other way around.

 

But the absolute number one reason to still keep human cashiers around is so you can enjoy the mind-exploding insanity of buying alcohol from someone who is under 21.  Sometimes I think chemtrails and ghost orbs are the stupidiest things I've ever heard of, but requiring a hand that has been on the earth in excess of 21 years to pass an object across a scanner takes the cake.

[ribuck]

I've next-to-never bought coffee at a dedicated store myself, so what's the benefit of human-prepared coffee?

Coffee machines are great when they are properly installed and recently serviced. But if something goes wrong (a pipe gets constricted, or a pump is sucking a drop of old milk back in at the end of each cycle, or even if they just haven't been cleaned properly), there's no human to notice that the quality of the coffee has dropped.

[nathanm]

What about the coffee itself andor the experience of a human-staffed shop?

[Guest Exceptionalist]

What about the coffee itself andor the experience of a human-staffed shop?

 

You simply use a standardized procedure with the best possible outcome. Combine that with an artificial intelligence and you emulate experience.

[Hannibal]

I always find coffee pretty hit & miss. I try to time it right to get the same guy or girl that made a good one last time. I wouldn't care if a robot served it as long as it was good.

[Eh Steve]

I find I have no ability to discern the difference in quality of anything I consume.  I'd probably take a hotdog over a gordon ramsay beef wellington (certainly if I had to pay for either).

 

I think the point of starbucks to me is that I take dates there sometimes.  Otherwise I just go with things like nescafe.

 

I am interested by this machine.  Perhaps I skimmed two quickly but I didn't figure out two key pieces of information:

 

How much will the coffee cost compared to starbucks.  And how much does the Machine cost vs. a starbucks franchise.

 

 

And how do you pick up your coffee when you order it from a distance.  If you say you are 15 minutes away and it takes you 17 minutes can someone just swipe your coffee?

 

Is the ordering more efficient than a barista?  I assume it involves people navigating the machine and pushing buttons like the jetsons.  I imagine the kind of people who take forever to decide on their drink order at starbucks, combining that with having to actually push buttons sounds like a real problem.

 

Side note:  I looooove self-checkouts.  I don't like standing around with nothing to do while someone scans my groceries.  Sometimes pleasant conversation works but often I'm stuck twiddling my thumbs.