“No Competitors”?Investing After Tasting: Why Money Is Flowing Into Kitchen Robots [Black and White Cooking Robot]②

Cross-section of a grilled beef patty by Alphagrill at the ANI research lab in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. Photo by Daehyun Kim

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This is the common answer given by venture capital (VC) investment managers when asked about their reasons for investing in kitchen robot companies. While 'taste' is the primary reason they cite, in reality, their decision-making is much more complex.

Each robot cooks different foods-chicken, hamburgers, pork belly, fried dishes-but the VCs' investment criteria are straightforward. They invest in teams that have no competitors or that solve problems which the market has yet to address.

At ENI Laboratory in Seongdong-gu, Seoul, 'Alphagrill' is pressing the upper and lower plates to grill a beef patty. Photo by Daehyun Kim

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Jo Seonggeun, Senior Investment Manager at Capstone Partners, explained the reason for investing in ENI, the manufacturer of the 'Alphagrill' hamburger patty grilling robot, by saying, "There really are no competitors for robots dedicated to patties. The very fact that no one else offers the same solution is incredibly attractive."

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ENI has previously attracted investment from both domestic and international VCs, including Capstone Partners, Intervest, SV Investment, and Bluepoint Partners. In the most recent pre-Series A bridge round, Korea Development Bank added 5.8 billion won, bringing the total cumulative investment to 25.5 billion won to date.

Jo also highlighted not only the taste but the fact that ENI succeeded in turning a differentiated idea into an actual product. He explained, "In the U.S., Miso Robotics' 'Flippy' uses a robotic arm to flip burger patties, but it takes up a lot of space behind the grill and costs over 100 million won to implement."

He continued, "ENI chose a completely different approach that doesn't require flipping. They asked, 'Why do we even need to flip it? Can't we just cook both sides at once?' This solution means the patties stay in place, and the movement is much simpler."

LB Investment first came into contact with Beyond Honeycomb, the producer of the 'GrillX' meat grilling robot, in 2019. Choi Jaehun, Senior Investment Manager at LB Investment, said, "At a demonstration held during the early investment round, I tasted meat grilled by the robot. It felt like steak cooked by a chef."

They monitored the company's technological progress for three years. He explained, "While reviewing the investment, we investigated whether similar solutions existed, not only in Korea but also in the United States, and found none."

He emphasized two core technologies: a low-cost spectroscopic sensor, which reduced the price of a mid-infrared camera from tens of millions of won to just hundreds of thousands of won, and an AI model that learns the molecular changes on the surface of the meat using that sensor. Choi assessed, "This is a unique technology that will be difficult for new competitors to catch up with."

Following this, Beyond Honeycomb raised 10 billion won in a Series A bridge round led by LB Investment. Korea Development Bank, BNK Venture Investment, and Devsisters Ventures participated, and Naver D2SF made an initial investment. The company’s total cumulative investment stands at 19.6 billion won.

The reaction from the field has also been positive. Choi said, "When you look at stores that continue to use and maintain the product, many use it for the 'taste' rather than just labor cost savings," adding, "Owners who have operated barbecue restaurants for a long time sometimes rate the taste from the robot higher than what they can achieve themselves."

Kitchen robotics is a highly challenging field. Unlike manufacturing plants with sterile systems, restaurants operate in much harsher environments. In the height of summer, temperatures can soar to 40-50 degrees Celsius, requiring the robots to withstand constant exposure to oil, heat, and humidity while repeating millions of movements.

Because they must also withstand various shocks and contamination, ensuring durability is a key challenge. If a product fails, restaurant operations come to an immediate halt, making a rapid after-sales service system essential.

AlphaGrill at the ENI Lab in Seongdong-gu, Seoul. Photo by Daehyun Kim

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At a barbecue restaurant in Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi Province, Beyond Honeycomb's 'GrillX' is moving pork belly placed on the grill onto the grill plate. Photo by Seoyul Hwang

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Jo emphasized, "There are simple but essential machines for each site, like kimbap-cutting machines or packaging machines. By combining robotics with the problems that restaurant owners truly need solved, we are creating new markets." Choi added, "It may be difficult to introduce cooking robots, but once they are in, they don't come out."

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The overall market size is also a consideration for VCs. In Korea alone, there are more than 100,000 restaurants serving pork or beef. Since the domestic market is divided among countless small business owners, initial customers are naturally limited to large franchises or high-revenue stores. However, even if only 1,000 restaurants were to introduce cooking robots, the market would be worth several tens of billions of won.

Furthermore, VCs are eyeing even larger overseas markets. ENI is also pursuing entry into the U.S. market. They have already installed their equipment in sports bar chains in the Northeastern United States and plan to supply to major franchises. Beyond Honeycomb has also received overseas inquiries. Choi said, "In the U.S., similar cooking robot equipment from other companies is rented out for around $2,500 a month (about 3.7 million won), which is much higher than the domestic rental price of about 1 million won per month."

The logic is that if the product is proven in Korea's small and demanding kitchens, it should be competitive in larger markets like the U.S. and Southeast Asia. Korea has the world's highest density of restaurant franchises, and labor costs are rising while labor shortages persist. VCs believe that products that survive first in such a 'difficult market' will have global competitiveness.

Jo noted, "Almost every restaurant in the U.S. has a hamburger on the menu. Just as most restaurants in Korea offer tonkatsu and fried rice, I believe that patty-grilling machines could become as common as deep fryers in the U.S. market."

At a barbecue restaurant in Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do, Beyond Honeycomb's 'GrillX' is lifting the grill to control the flames while grilling pork belly. Photo by Seoyul Hwang

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Four pieces of samgyeopsal grilled in about three minutes by Beyond Honeycomb's 'GrillX' are being placed on a plate to be served to a customer at a barbecue restaurant in Paldal-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do. Photo by Seoyul Hwang

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