PASADENA, Calif., March 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Culinary on demand startup Kitchen United today announced that Meredith Sandland will join the company as Chief Operating Officer, effective March 5, 2018. Sandland most recently served as Chief Development Officer for Taco Bell, a division of Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) with 7,000 locations and $10 billion in system sales. In this role, she added more than $1 billion in sales to the system through the addition of 1,000 restaurants in just four years. Sandland will be responsible for driving revenue and overseeing Kitchen United’s business strategy, operations and national rollout plan.
“I’m incredibly excited to welcome Meredith to Kitchen United’s leadership team. She embodies the strong business instincts, deep knowledge of the industry, extensive leadership and passion that will drive our mission forward,” said Kitchen United CEO Jim Collins. “We have ambitious goals for 2018, and the addition of Meredith will enable us to help restaurant operators and independent food professionals expand their footprint and integrate seamlessly with delivery operations by using our turnkey back of house infrastructure.”
Sandland joins former McDonald’s executive Atul Sood and celebrated restaurateur and SBE Entertainment leader Massimo Noja De Marco, who will serve as Kitchen United’s Chief Business Officer and Chief Culinary Officer, respectively. Sood will spearhead administrative, financial, and operations management. De Marco will drive all aspects of food development for Kitchen United’s culinary partners. Kitchen United is led by Chief Executive Officer Jim Collins, founder, owner and operator of Town Kitchen and Grill in Montrose, CA, a 100-seat new American restaurant that recently made the list of 10 best new American restaurants in Los Angeles.
“I am thrilled to join Kitchen United at this pivotal time in the evolving restaurant industry landscape,” said Kitchen United Chief Operating Officer Meredith Sandland. “I have tremendous respect for Kitchen United’s powerful mission to help restaurants thrive with off-premise dining and will focus on delivering value for our existing partners, attracting new ones and growing our brand.”
Kitchen United was spun out of Cali Group, the holding company behind Miso Robotics’ burger-flipping robot, Flippy, and the first application of facial recognition technology in U.S. restaurants that allows consumers to pay with just their faces, who invested in both rounds of the company’s financing. Last month, Kitchen United introduced its new center of culinary imagination and excellence with the opening of its first facility in Pasadena, Calif. The 12,000 sq. ft. fully equipped kitchen space leverages technology, including integrated point of sale software, back of house automation, and efficient order interfaces that combine inbounds from various delivery platforms, to enable new levels of efficiency for food businesses. The facility will be used by regional and national food and restaurant brands to produce fresh food solely for the purpose of takeout, catering and delivery.
Kitchen United also provides kitchen space that can be rented by the hour to food truck operators and catering firms in need of licensed preparation space, as well as by entrepreneurs seeking to develop new food products or restaurant concepts.
About Kitchen United
Based in Pasadena, Calif., Kitchen United is on a mission to evolve the ecosystem for food enthusiasts and restaurant operators. Their back-of-house infrastructure empowers food businesses to innovate, dream, and grow. For more information visit www.kitchenunited.com.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon-1.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-03-06 09:00:232018-04-20 10:31:47KITCHEN UNITED NAMES FORMER YUM! BRANDS EXECUTIVE MEREDITH SANDLAND AS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced it has partnered with Levy, the renowned sports and entertainment hospitality company, to bring robotic kitchen assistants to sports and entertainment venues. The partnership expands the presence of Miso Robotics’ collaborative, adaptable robotic kitchen assistants, which will help kitchen staff provide speedy and tasty food options to on-the-go sports fans and concert goers.
“Levy values the role our robotic kitchen assistants play in helping staff deliver faster, freshly prepared food and we’re excited to join forces with such a forward thinking partner to achieve our collective mission in improving consumers’ dining experiences.”
“Serving food in sports venues can be a more complex challenge than in fast food restaurants,” said Melissa Burghardt, chief operating officer of Miso Robotics. “Levy values the role our robotic kitchen assistants play in helping staff deliver faster, freshly prepared food and we’re excited to join forces with such a forward thinking partner to achieve our collective mission in improving consumers’ dining experiences.”
In February, Levy participated in Miso Robotics’ $10 million Series B funding. As part of the investment, the companies agreed to team up and will launch the first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant in a Levy-operated venue later this year.
Andy Lansing, president and chief executive officer of Levy added, “We understand that our guests desire exceptional experiences and we’re committed to making sure each one we serve has the most memorable and frictionless dining experiences possible. What appealed to us most in partnering with Miso Robotics is our shared vision in changing the way food is prepared through advanced technology. Their platform will enable us to operate more efficiently, control waste, decrease wait times, enhance consistency and, most importantly, meet guests’ needs.”
David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics added, “I’m thrilled that one of the biggest names in hospitality chose Miso Robotics to assist kitchen staff in their venues. We have a strong vision of improving working conditions for chefs and line cooks with our technology and I look forward to working with Levy to accomplish making kitchen tasks more fun, collaborative, safe and productive.”
Miso Robotics is publicly debuting its first robotic kitchen assistant ‘Flippy’ today in CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location. The company is also expanding the capabilities of its Miso AI platform for restaurants and food preparation businesses.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Levy
A disrupter in the premium sports and entertainment dining experience, Levy is recognized as one of the fastest growing and most critically acclaimed hospitality companies. Named one of the 10 most innovative companies in sports by Fast Company magazine,Levy’s diverse portfolio includes award-winning restaurants, iconic sports and entertainment venues, and convention centers, as well as the Super Bowl, Grammy Awards, PGA Championship, US Open Tennis Tournament, Kentucky Derby, and NHL, MLB, NBA All-Star Games. Levy subsidiary companies include E15 Group (technology and analytics), Curiology (experience design and innovation) and Rank + Rally (retail). For more, visit www.levyrestaurants.com.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon-1.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-03-05 08:01:012018-04-20 10:26:46MISO ROBOTICS AND LEVY ENTER INTO STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP TO BRING ROBOTIC KITCHEN ASSISTANTS TO SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT VENUES
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced the public debut of ‘Flippy,’ the world’s first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant. Flippy will begin working alongside kitchen staff at CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location during lunchtime by flipping burger patties and removing them from the grill when cooked to order.
“The deployment of Flippy in CaliBurger restaurants represents a major milestone in helping our staff produce mouthwatering burgers more consistently and in a timely manner. The ease of integration into our existing kitchen lines will also allow us to quickly install Flippy in more locations nationwide.”
Aiming to augment commercial kitchen operations with advanced technology, Miso Robotics developed Miso AI, a cloud-connected learning platform that powers industrial robotic arms. Miso AI combines 3D, thermal and regular vision to automatically detect when raw burger patties are placed on the grill and monitors each one in real-time throughout the cooking process. As the patties cook, Miso AI displays the cooking time on a screen that also alerts kitchen staff when to place cheese on top or when to dress a burger. It also enables Flippy to switch from using a spatula for raw meat and one for cooked meat. In addition, Flippy has the ability to clean spatulas while cooking and to wipe the surface of the grill with a scraper.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my incredibly talented team for their hard work in bringing Flippy to life and we are just getting started,” said David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics. “Our mission is to improve working conditions of chefs and line cooks with assistants, not replace them. Anyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant knows how hard the work is and the value of extra hands and that’s exactly what we built.”
Miso Robotics understands the many challenges restaurants face, including turnover rate and increasing demand for prepared foods. In 2016, the team partnered with CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division, to develop a cost-effective and highly efficient solution leveraging their expertise in robotics and artificial intelligence. This resulted in the concept for Flippy, which was specifically designed to operate in an existing commercial kitchen layout and to serve alongside kitchen staff to safely and efficiently fulfill a variety of cooking tasks.
John Miller, chairman of Cali Group, added, “The deployment of Flippy in CaliBurger restaurants represents a major milestone in helping our staff produce mouthwatering burgers more consistently and in a timely manner. The ease of integration into our existing kitchen lines will also allow us to quickly install Flippy in more locations nationwide.”
“I can’t think of anything more rewarding than working on something so challenging that also has the potential to be impactful,” said Dr. Ryan Sinnet, co-founder and chief technology officer of Miso Robotics. “Our team poured their hearts into getting Flippy ready to cook for people and I’m so proud of the grit we displayed to accomplish this in record time.”
For more information on when Flippy will be operating, visit CaliBurger’s Pasadena website.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here.
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Cali Group
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon-1.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-03-05 08:00:522018-04-20 10:29:41FLIPPY, THE WORLD'S FIRST AUTONOMOUS ROBOTIC KITCHEN ASSISTANT, NOW COOKS BURGERS AT CALIBURGER IN PASADENA, CALIFORNIA
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced the public debut of ‘Flippy,’ the world’s first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant. Flippy will begin working alongside kitchen staff at CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location during lunchtime by flipping burger patties and removing them from the grill when cooked to order
Aiming to augment commercial kitchen operations with advanced technology, Miso Robotics developed Miso AI, a cloud-connected learning platform that powers industrial robotic arms. Miso AI combines 3D, thermal and regular vision to automatically detect when raw burger patties are placed on the grill and monitors each one in real-time throughout the cooking process. As the patties cook, Miso AI displays the cooking time on a screen that also alerts kitchen staff when to place cheese on top or when to dress a burger. It also enables Flippy to switch from using a spatula for raw meat and one for cooked meat. In addition, Flippy has the ability to clean spatulas while cooking and to wipe the surface of the grill with a scraper.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my incredibly talented team for their hard work in bringing Flippy to life and we are just getting started,” said David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics. “Our mission is to improve working conditions of chefs and line cooks with assistants, not replace them. Anyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant knows how hard the work is and the value of extra hands and that’s exactly what we built.”
Miso Robotics understands the many challenges restaurants face, including turnover rate and increasing demand for prepared foods. In 2016, the team partnered with CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division, to develop a cost-effective and highly efficient solution leveraging their expertise in robotics and artificial intelligence. This resulted in the concept for Flippy, which was specifically designed to operate in an existing commercial kitchen layout and to serve alongside kitchen staff to safely and efficiently fulfill a variety of cooking tasks
John Miller, chairman of Cali Group, added, “The deployment of Flippy in CaliBurger restaurants represents a major milestone in helping our staff produce mouthwatering burgers more consistently and in a timely manner. The ease of integration into our existing kitchen lines will also allow us to quickly install Flippy in more locations nationwide.”
“I can’t think of anything more rewarding than working on something so challenging that also has the potential to be impactful,” said Dr. Ryan Sinnet, co-founder and chief technology officer of Miso Robotics. “Our team poured their hearts into getting Flippy ready to cook for people and I’m so proud of the grit we displayed to accomplish this in record time.”
For more information on when Flippy will be operating, visit CaliBurger’s Pasadena website.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here.
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Cali Group
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon-1.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-03-05 00:27:162018-06-17 00:29:35Flippy, the World’s First Autonomous Robotic Kitchen Assistant, Now Cooks Burgers at CaliBurger in Pasadena, California
PASADENA, CA, Feb. 8, 2018 – Cali Group announced today that its restaurant operating subsidiary, CaliBurger, will expand in 2018 throughout North America, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The company also announced that its face-based loyalty and payment ordering kiosks as well as Flippy, the burger flipping robot, will be available at multiple CaliBurger locations this year.
“Every new CaliBurger restaurant is being designed with an eye toward implementation of the technologies being developed by Cali Group’s affiliated companies,” said Jonathan Wong, Chief Operating Officer of CaliBurger. “Our goal in the next 12 to 24 months is to begin deploying the unified Cali Group C-Vision™ technology platform, where the entire restaurant — from front of the house to back of the house — is operated from one app on a single tablet.” New CaliBurger locations coming in 2018 include:
North America
In North America, the brand currently operates restaurants and food trucks in the Pacific Northwest, Southern California and the DMV (Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area). New locations currently under construction in these markets are:
• British Columbia, Canada (10330 152 St, Surrey, BC) • British Columbia, Canada (8901 Cornerstone Mews, Burnaby, BC) • Seattle, Wash. (Westlake Village Mall) • Additionally, later in 2018, CaliBurger is planning to open new in-line restaurants in the Washington D.C. area and drive thru formats in Maryland. Following, will be a flagship store in Santa Monica, slated to arrive by the end of the year.
Middle East
CaliBurger has more restaurants in the Middle East than any other region. New stores currently under construction include:
• Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates (Al Mansar Mall) • Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (Moj Plaza) • Plus, the brand is planning to open additional stores throughout 2018 in the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
Asia
In Asia, CaliBurger is repositioning the brand to be higher end, moving away from a QSR and leaning into casual dining. New locations include:
• Manila, Philippines: a new flagship restaurant, debuting the latest store presentation
Latin America
CaliBurger plans to expand faster in Latin America than any other region of the world. The regional flagship, a 400 square meter drive thru, opened in Puebla, Mexico in early 2018. The company also plans to launch additional new markets in Latin America later this year, for a total of 15 restaurant openings in the region. Four stores are currently under construction in Mexico, including:
• Puebla, Mexico (Calz. Ignacio Zaragoza 410) • Puebla, Mexico (Plaza Sinfonía) • Hermosillo, Mexico (Bulevar José María Morelos 248) • Ciudad Juárez, Mexico (Plaza Tres 08)
Cali Group’s state -of-the-art technology will be on display at the International Franchise Expo to be held in Mexico City on March 1-3 in Booth 1410. To schedule a demo and interview at the show, please contact [email protected].
ABOUT CALIBURGER CaliBurger is a 21st century revival of the classic California burger joint. Our founders are California-bred with global ambitions, bringing the best of California culture, technology, imagery and food to markets that have long craved the famous California style burger. CaliBurger provides a premium quality burger experience at an accessible QSR price point. CaliBurger now operates in 12 countries. CaliBurger’s products feature the highest quality beef, buns baked fresh, top-grade chicken, hand-selected vegetables, zero trans-fat oils, sauces made in house, and hand-mixed shakes. Our made-to-order meals are always prepared in open kitchens, and our restaurants incorporate advanced technologies to create a unique dining experience. CaliBurger customers can enjoy a taste of California in an environment that looks, smells, and feels like California. For more information, please visit www.caliburger.com.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-02-08 12:00:192018-03-16 14:58:56CALI GROUP'S RESTAURANT OPERATING SUBSIDIARY ANNOUNCES GLOBAL EXPANSION PLAN FOR 2018
PASADENA, CA, Jan. 26, 2018 – Cali Group, a pioneer in developing innovative technologies for the restaurant and retail industries, announced today the launch of a face-based payment pilot program at CaliBurger, its restaurant operating subsidiary, in Pasadena, California, where the Quick Serve Restaurant chain showcases new technologies developed by its parent company. The program, which will be available to the public on Tuesday, January 30th, enables the customer to pay with a glance at the camera without ever needing to swipe a credit card.
In late 2017, Cali Group launched face based loyalty login on its large format self ordering kiosks. Customers login to their loyalty accounts at the self ordering kiosks without needing to type in any identifying information. Now, in addition to accessing their loyalty account by looking at the camera on the kiosk, customers can also complete the transaction by looking at the camera.
“The positive customer reaction to face based loyalty login at the kiosks encouraged us to quickly deploy face based payments at the kiosks,” said John Miller, CEO of Cali Group. “To our knowledge, this is the first time in America that customers in a retail environment can pay without needing a physical or digital wallet.”
Privacy and security are a top priority for Cali Group. Cali Group’s face based system requires a two-step authentication process. In addition to smiling at the camera, the customer will also need to enter a 3-digit CVV number from their credit card to process the transaction. Longer run, after demonstrating that face based authentication of payments is significantly more secure than swiping credit cards, Cali Group plans to eliminate the entry of the CVV number and only require a smile to authenticate the transaction.
“NEC is a leading innovator in delivering retail technologies and solutions from the point of sale to the back office and beyond,” said Matt Worley, Vice President of NEC Retail Solutions. “Cali Group’s face payment technology powered by NEC can be used to reinvent the customer experience and reduce transaction costs for merchants.”
Face based payment is a component of Cali Group’s unified C -Vision™platform, which ties together software products developed by Cali Group’s affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. If customers are pleased with the new ordering and payment experience, the face-based payment feature will be rolled out to CaliBurger’s global locations.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
ABOUT NEC CORPORATION OF AMERICA NEC Corporation of America (NEC) is a leading technology integrator providing solutions that improve the way people work and communicate. NEC delivers integrated Solutions for Society that are aligned with our customers’ priorities to create new value for people, businesses and society, with a special focus on safety, security and efficiency. We deliver one of the industry’s strongest and most innovative portfolios of communications, analytics, security, biometrics and technology solutions that unleash customers’ productivity potential. Through these solutions, NEC combines its best-inclass solutions and technology, and leverages a robust partner ecosystem to solve today’s most complex business problems. NEC Corporation of America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global technology leader with a presence in 160 countries and $25 billion in revenues. For more information, please visit www.necam.com.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2018-01-26 00:13:312018-03-16 15:00:14CALI GROUP BEGINS TAKING FACE BASED PAYMENTS IN ITS RESTAURANT OPERATING SUBSIDIARY
New AI-Enabled Self Ordering Kiosks Available at CaliBurger Pasadena, Showcase at NRF 2018
PASADENA, CA – December 19, 2017 – Cali Group and NEC Corporation of America today unveiled new AI-enabled self-ordering kiosks at CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division. The kiosks use NEC’s NeoFace® facial recognition software to identify registered customers and pull up their loyalty accounts and order preferences. The kiosk pilot program is now at CaliBurger’s Pasadena location, where the Quick Serve Restaurant chain showcases new technologies developed by its parent company. If customers are pleased with the new ordering experience, the kiosks will be rolled out to CaliBurger’s global locations next year. Also in 2018, the platform will be used to allow customers to pay using their faces.
As shown in the demo video, customers will have the option of immediately activating their loyalty accounts as they approach the kiosks without needing to swipe a card or type in identifying information. The loyalty account shows a customer’s favorite historical meal packages, enabling the customer to complete the ordering transaction in a matter of seconds. “Face-based loyalty significantly reduces the friction associated with loyalty program registration and use; further, it enables a restaurant chain like CaliBurger to provide a customized, one-on-one interactive experience at the ordering kiosk,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group. “Our goal for 2018 is to replace credit card swipes with face-based payments. Facial recognition is part of our broader strategy to enable the restaurant and retail industries to provide the same kinds of benefits and conveniences in the built world that customers experience with retailers like Amazon in the digital world.”
In addition to using facial recognition to enhance and improve the customer experience in restaurants, Cali Group is pioneering: AI and robotics to automate kitchen equipment and monitor the dining area; social gaming for entertainment in the dining area; and infrastructure for autonomous vehicles to deliver fresh food.
Cali Group worked with global technology firm NEC Corporation of America to integrate NEC’s facial recognition technology into its loyalty program. In 2017, the US National Institute of
Standards and Technology ranked NEC’s platform the most accurate in the world for one-to-many searching.
“NEC’s face recognition software technology is considered among the world’s most accurate, making it an ideal tool for retailers seeking to provide the best possible customer service and convenience for their customers,” said Matt Worley, Vice President, Retail Solutions, NEC Corporation of America. “We are committed to helping Cali Group reinvent the customer experience in the best ways possible, and I encourage anyone attending NRF 2018 to come see a demonstration of the technology in action.”
Cali Group’s new facial recognition self-ordering kiosks will be on display at NRF 2018 | Retail’s Big Show in New York City on January 14-16 in Booth 3153. To schedule a demo and interview at the show, please contact [email protected].
Editor’s Note: Please credit video and visuals to Cali Group. Additional video clips here.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering restaurant and retail operating software systems to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
About NEC Corporation of America NEC Corporation of America (NEC) is a leading technology integrator providing solutions that improve the way people work and communicate. NEC delivers integrated Solutions for Society that are aligned with our customers’ priorities to create new value for people, businesses and society, with a special focus on safety, security and efficiency. We deliver one of the industry’s strongest and most innovative portfolios of communications, analytics, security, biometrics and technology solutions that unleash customers’ productivity potential. Through these solutions, NEC combines its best-in-class solutions and technology, and leverages a robust partner ecosystem to solve today’s most complex business problems. NEC Corporation of America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global technology leader with a presence in 160 countries and $25 billion in revenues.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2017-12-19 00:16:442018-03-16 00:19:40CALI GROUP DEMONSTRATES FACE BASED LOYALTY PROGRAM PILOT IN ITS RESTAURANT OPERATING DIVISION
Walkers Will Wear “Cali Coins” That Can Be Captured, Purchased, and Redeemed For Food At Substantial Discounts
October 9, 2017 – Cali Group, a technology company focused on transforming the restaurant and retail industries, announced today that it is expanding use of its PoP wearable advertising platform to further drive sales at its restaurant division, CaliBurger. The first marketing campaigns using the PoP platform took place in areas surrounding CaliBurger units on the West Coast, where “Walkers” wore digital displays (integrated into backpacks) showing special offers taking place inside of the restaurants. The campaigns were a cost effective tool to increase store sales.
The next phase will involve sale of “Cali Coins” through the wearable digital display network. Consumers will have the opportunity to identify Cali Coins on the backs of Walkers in public places and use their mobile devices to immediately capture and purchase the Cali Coins. The Cali Coins can then be exchanged for food at substantial discounts in a local CaliBurger restaurant using the self ordering kiosks.
The restaurant and retail industries sell billions of dollars of coupons through various online distribution channels. There is little differentiation between the different online platforms, and the audience reach is limited. PoP enables restaurants, retailers, and consumer brands to deliver digital coupons and digital coins to a broad audience dwelling in the built world within hundreds of yards of their locations. “The PoP platform is a key component of the restaurant and retail operating system of the future that Cali Group is pioneering,” said John Miller, Chairman of Cali Group. “In addition to delivering immediate ROI at the store level, PoP increases enrollment by Millennials and Gen Z in the CaliBurger loyalty program.”
Separate from CaliBurger, PoP is also in pilot trials with other retailers and consumer brands at trade shows, on college campuses, and in malls and other densely populated retail areas. PoP’s wearable machine vision system provides ad buyers with detailed data about the targeted viewers.
ABOUT POP PoP is a smart, micro-location marketing and commerce platform, powered by machine vision and artificial intelligence. PoP helps offline businesses drive profitable growth by influencing high-potential customers with near-me offers and content, delivered in intent-rich moments. By seamlessly blending content and commerce, PoP’s fresh and engaging format creates durable brand affinity and loyalty across user segments, while simultaneously building rich shopper behavior and location intelligence. ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering restaurant and retail software systems to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2017-10-09 00:20:572018-03-16 00:22:42CALI GROUP TO EXPAND USE OF ITS POP ADVERTISING PLATFORM TO DRIVE CALIBURGER SALES
Capital To Be Used To Deploy “Flippy” In CaliBurger Restaurants
July 6, 2017 – Cali Group announced today that Miso Robotics has received over $3 million in funding from strategic investors, including Acacia Research and Match Robotics VC. The press release describing the financing can be viewed at goo.gl/bnK6nS. Miso was co-founded and funded by Cali Group in 2016 to revolutionize the restaurant industry with machine vision, artificial intelligence, and robotics. Miso will use the funding to deploy in CaliBurger restaurants its first commercial product, an AI-driven robotic kitchen assistant named “Flippy” that works alongside kitchen staff to improve operational efficiency for the restaurant industry.
“While the biggest companies in the world are focused on using computer vision and artificial intelligence to drive cars and manage the home, Cali Group will facilitate and lead the adoption of these emerging technologies in the restaurant and retail industries,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group.
Miso received worldwide attention following the initial debut of Flippy in CaliBurger’s restaurant in Pasadena, California. Miso and CaliBurger were featured in TechCrunch (https://goo.gl/hM4oa6), Forbes (https://goo.gl/1QnkTC ), Fortune (https://goo.gl/FWL48X ), and Fox News (https://goo.gl/fWDNnP). And on July 4th, Miso demonstrated a Flippy 2.0 prototype cooking patties on existing kitchen equipment with a standard spatula on CNBC, at https://goo.gl/pAzozZ.
Cali Group’s mission is to transform the restaurant and retail industries with new technology platforms. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate operational proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies. In addition to CaliBurger and Miso Robotics, Cali Group also has significant ownership positions in Super League Gaming, FunWall, and PopPacks.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering software systems for restaurant and retail operators to drive revenue, lower costs,
coll ect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2017-07-06 00:32:142018-03-16 00:47:40CALI GROUP ANNOUNCES FINANCING FOR MISO ROBOTICS
POPpack’s Machine Vision Software Offers a Pay Per View Advertising Model On Wearable Displays
PASADENA, June 30th – Cali Group announced today that its subsidiary, CaliBurger, will begin marketing campaigns in July using POPpacks, the first “mobile advertising” platform based on machine vision. The campaigns will take place around CaliBurger’s restaurants in Seattle, Los Angeles, and Maryland. Through POPpack’s automated marketplace, CaliBurger will deliver customized messages to digital displays integrated into backpacks worn by Millennials and Centennials walking within hundreds of yards of CaliBurger’s locations. POPpack’s proprietary machine vision system (leveraging the camera on the display) offers brands like CaliBurger the ability to pay based on the number of people that see the messages. Similar to Uber, as shown in the video, “walkers” can earn income through the mobile App.
“Our mission at Cali Group is to use new technologies to transform the restaurant and retail industries and aggregate data about the offline world,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group. “Cali Group invested in POPpacks to enable restaurants, retailers, and brands to have personal brand ambassadors deliver messages in places that have been traditionally inaccessible.”
The initial launch of the platform allows walkers to buy a custom POPpacks backpack, insert their iPad, and download the POPpacks app to begin making money. As featured on Episode 2 of Apple’s new TV show, Planet of the Apps, POPpacks is also developing its own flexible display hardware integrated into backpacks that is low cost, daylight readable, shatterproof, and can last for months without needing to be charged. In addition to POPpacks, Cali Group also has significant ownership positions in Super League Gaming, FunWall, and Miso Robotics.
ABOUT CALI GROUP
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering software systems for restaurant and retail operators to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
https://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/favicon-1.jpg?time=1732635815247269caligrouphttps://tx0cb8.a2cdn1.secureserver.net/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/Option-2-Cali-Group-Logo-300x110.pngcaligroup2017-06-30 15:47:022018-06-17 00:19:28CALI GROUP TO DEMONSTRATE ITS “MOBILE ADVERTISING” PLATFORM TO MARKET CALIBURGER BRAND AND DRIVE STORE SALES
KITCHEN UNITED NAMES FORMER YUM! BRANDS EXECUTIVE MEREDITH SANDLAND AS CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER
PASADENA, Calif., March 6, 2018 /PRNewswire/ — Culinary on demand startup Kitchen United today announced that Meredith Sandland will join the company as Chief Operating Officer, effective March 5, 2018. Sandland most recently served as Chief Development Officer for Taco Bell, a division of Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) with 7,000 locations and $10 billion in system sales. In this role, she added more than $1 billion in sales to the system through the addition of 1,000 restaurants in just four years. Sandland will be responsible for driving revenue and overseeing Kitchen United’s business strategy, operations and national rollout plan.
“I’m incredibly excited to welcome Meredith to Kitchen United’s leadership team. She embodies the strong business instincts, deep knowledge of the industry, extensive leadership and passion that will drive our mission forward,” said Kitchen United CEO Jim Collins. “We have ambitious goals for 2018, and the addition of Meredith will enable us to help restaurant operators and independent food professionals expand their footprint and integrate seamlessly with delivery operations by using our turnkey back of house infrastructure.”
Sandland joins former McDonald’s executive Atul Sood and celebrated restaurateur and SBE Entertainment leader Massimo Noja De Marco, who will serve as Kitchen United’s Chief Business Officer and Chief Culinary Officer, respectively. Sood will spearhead administrative, financial, and operations management. De Marco will drive all aspects of food development for Kitchen United’s culinary partners. Kitchen United is led by Chief Executive Officer Jim Collins, founder, owner and operator of Town Kitchen and Grill in Montrose, CA, a 100-seat new American restaurant that recently made the list of 10 best new American restaurants in Los Angeles.
“I am thrilled to join Kitchen United at this pivotal time in the evolving restaurant industry landscape,” said Kitchen United Chief Operating Officer Meredith Sandland. “I have tremendous respect for Kitchen United’s powerful mission to help restaurants thrive with off-premise dining and will focus on delivering value for our existing partners, attracting new ones and growing our brand.”
Kitchen United was spun out of Cali Group, the holding company behind Miso Robotics’ burger-flipping robot, Flippy, and the first application of facial recognition technology in U.S. restaurants that allows consumers to pay with just their faces, who invested in both rounds of the company’s financing. Last month, Kitchen United introduced its new center of culinary imagination and excellence with the opening of its first facility in Pasadena, Calif. The 12,000 sq. ft. fully equipped kitchen space leverages technology, including integrated point of sale software, back of house automation, and efficient order interfaces that combine inbounds from various delivery platforms, to enable new levels of efficiency for food businesses. The facility will be used by regional and national food and restaurant brands to produce fresh food solely for the purpose of takeout, catering and delivery.
Kitchen United also provides kitchen space that can be rented by the hour to food truck operators and catering firms in need of licensed preparation space, as well as by entrepreneurs seeking to develop new food products or restaurant concepts.
About Kitchen United
Based in Pasadena, Calif., Kitchen United is on a mission to evolve the ecosystem for food enthusiasts and restaurant operators. Their back-of-house infrastructure empowers food businesses to innovate, dream, and grow. For more information visit www.kitchenunited.com.
SOURCE Kitchen United
Related Links
http://www.kitchenunited.com
MISO ROBOTICS AND LEVY ENTER INTO STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP TO BRING ROBOTIC KITCHEN ASSISTANTS TO SPORTS AND ENTERTAINMENT VENUES
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced it has partnered with Levy, the renowned sports and entertainment hospitality company, to bring robotic kitchen assistants to sports and entertainment venues. The partnership expands the presence of Miso Robotics’ collaborative, adaptable robotic kitchen assistants, which will help kitchen staff provide speedy and tasty food options to on-the-go sports fans and concert goers.
“Serving food in sports venues can be a more complex challenge than in fast food restaurants,” said Melissa Burghardt, chief operating officer of Miso Robotics. “Levy values the role our robotic kitchen assistants play in helping staff deliver faster, freshly prepared food and we’re excited to join forces with such a forward thinking partner to achieve our collective mission in improving consumers’ dining experiences.”
In February, Levy participated in Miso Robotics’ $10 million Series B funding. As part of the investment, the companies agreed to team up and will launch the first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant in a Levy-operated venue later this year.
Andy Lansing, president and chief executive officer of Levy added, “We understand that our guests desire exceptional experiences and we’re committed to making sure each one we serve has the most memorable and frictionless dining experiences possible. What appealed to us most in partnering with Miso Robotics is our shared vision in changing the way food is prepared through advanced technology. Their platform will enable us to operate more efficiently, control waste, decrease wait times, enhance consistency and, most importantly, meet guests’ needs.”
David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics added, “I’m thrilled that one of the biggest names in hospitality chose Miso Robotics to assist kitchen staff in their venues. We have a strong vision of improving working conditions for chefs and line cooks with our technology and I look forward to working with Levy to accomplish making kitchen tasks more fun, collaborative, safe and productive.”
Miso Robotics is publicly debuting its first robotic kitchen assistant ‘Flippy’ today in CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location. The company is also expanding the capabilities of its Miso AI platform for restaurants and food preparation businesses.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Levy
A disrupter in the premium sports and entertainment dining experience, Levy is recognized as one of the fastest growing and most critically acclaimed hospitality companies. Named one of the 10 most innovative companies in sports by Fast Company magazine, Levy’s diverse portfolio includes award-winning restaurants, iconic sports and entertainment venues, and convention centers, as well as the Super Bowl, Grammy Awards, PGA Championship, US Open Tennis Tournament, Kentucky Derby, and NHL, MLB, NBA All-Star Games. Levy subsidiary companies include E15 Group (technology and analytics), Curiology (experience design and innovation) and Rank + Rally (retail). For more, visit www.levyrestaurants.com.
Contacts
For Miso Robotics
Stephanie Cirigliano
[email protected]
FLIPPY, THE WORLD’S FIRST AUTONOMOUS ROBOTIC KITCHEN ASSISTANT, NOW COOKS BURGERS AT CALIBURGER IN PASADENA, CALIFORNIA
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced the public debut of ‘Flippy,’ the world’s first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant. Flippy will begin working alongside kitchen staff at CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location during lunchtime by flipping burger patties and removing them from the grill when cooked to order.
Aiming to augment commercial kitchen operations with advanced technology, Miso Robotics developed Miso AI, a cloud-connected learning platform that powers industrial robotic arms. Miso AI combines 3D, thermal and regular vision to automatically detect when raw burger patties are placed on the grill and monitors each one in real-time throughout the cooking process. As the patties cook, Miso AI displays the cooking time on a screen that also alerts kitchen staff when to place cheese on top or when to dress a burger. It also enables Flippy to switch from using a spatula for raw meat and one for cooked meat. In addition, Flippy has the ability to clean spatulas while cooking and to wipe the surface of the grill with a scraper.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my incredibly talented team for their hard work in bringing Flippy to life and we are just getting started,” said David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics. “Our mission is to improve working conditions of chefs and line cooks with assistants, not replace them. Anyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant knows how hard the work is and the value of extra hands and that’s exactly what we built.”
Miso Robotics understands the many challenges restaurants face, including turnover rate and increasing demand for prepared foods. In 2016, the team partnered with CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division, to develop a cost-effective and highly efficient solution leveraging their expertise in robotics and artificial intelligence. This resulted in the concept for Flippy, which was specifically designed to operate in an existing commercial kitchen layout and to serve alongside kitchen staff to safely and efficiently fulfill a variety of cooking tasks.
John Miller, chairman of Cali Group, added, “The deployment of Flippy in CaliBurger restaurants represents a major milestone in helping our staff produce mouthwatering burgers more consistently and in a timely manner. The ease of integration into our existing kitchen lines will also allow us to quickly install Flippy in more locations nationwide.”
“I can’t think of anything more rewarding than working on something so challenging that also has the potential to be impactful,” said Dr. Ryan Sinnet, co-founder and chief technology officer of Miso Robotics. “Our team poured their hearts into getting Flippy ready to cook for people and I’m so proud of the grit we displayed to accomplish this in record time.”
For more information on when Flippy will be operating, visit CaliBurger’s Pasadena website.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here.
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Cali Group
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
Contacts
For Miso Robotics
Stephanie Cirigliano
[email protected]
Flippy, the World’s First Autonomous Robotic Kitchen Assistant, Now Cooks Burgers at CaliBurger in Pasadena, California
PASADENA, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Miso Robotics, the leading robotics and artificial intelligence solutions company, today announced the public debut of ‘Flippy,’ the world’s first autonomous robotic kitchen assistant. Flippy will begin working alongside kitchen staff at CaliBurger’s Pasadena, California location during lunchtime by flipping burger patties and removing them from the grill when cooked to order
Aiming to augment commercial kitchen operations with advanced technology, Miso Robotics developed Miso AI, a cloud-connected learning platform that powers industrial robotic arms. Miso AI combines 3D, thermal and regular vision to automatically detect when raw burger patties are placed on the grill and monitors each one in real-time throughout the cooking process. As the patties cook, Miso AI displays the cooking time on a screen that also alerts kitchen staff when to place cheese on top or when to dress a burger. It also enables Flippy to switch from using a spatula for raw meat and one for cooked meat. In addition, Flippy has the ability to clean spatulas while cooking and to wipe the surface of the grill with a scraper.
“I couldn’t be more proud of my incredibly talented team for their hard work in bringing Flippy to life and we are just getting started,” said David Zito, co-founder and chief executive officer of Miso Robotics. “Our mission is to improve working conditions of chefs and line cooks with assistants, not replace them. Anyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant knows how hard the work is and the value of extra hands and that’s exactly what we built.”
Miso Robotics understands the many challenges restaurants face, including turnover rate and increasing demand for prepared foods. In 2016, the team partnered with CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division, to develop a cost-effective and highly efficient solution leveraging their expertise in robotics and artificial intelligence. This resulted in the concept for Flippy, which was specifically designed to operate in an existing commercial kitchen layout and to serve alongside kitchen staff to safely and efficiently fulfill a variety of cooking tasks
John Miller, chairman of Cali Group, added, “The deployment of Flippy in CaliBurger restaurants represents a major milestone in helping our staff produce mouthwatering burgers more consistently and in a timely manner. The ease of integration into our existing kitchen lines will also allow us to quickly install Flippy in more locations nationwide.”
“I can’t think of anything more rewarding than working on something so challenging that also has the potential to be impactful,” said Dr. Ryan Sinnet, co-founder and chief technology officer of Miso Robotics. “Our team poured their hearts into getting Flippy ready to cook for people and I’m so proud of the grit we displayed to accomplish this in record time.”
For more information on when Flippy will be operating, visit CaliBurger’s Pasadena website.
Editors Notes: Miso Robotics Media Kit with video and images available here.
About Miso Robotics
Miso Robotics (misorobotics.com) is revolutionizing the restaurant and prepared food industries with innovative robotics and artificial intelligence AI solutions. Miso was founded with a mission to leverage AI technology to help chefs cook food perfectly and consistently and enable restaurants to increase labor productivity, reduce costs and drive profitability while improving the overall dining experience. Miso employs a respected team of roboticists, engineers and industrial designers from Caltech, Cornell, MIT, Carnegie Mellon, Art Center and UNC Chapel Hill.
About Cali Group
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
CALI GROUP’S RESTAURANT OPERATING SUBSIDIARY ANNOUNCES GLOBAL EXPANSION PLAN FOR 2018
PASADENA, CA, Feb. 8, 2018 – Cali Group announced today that its restaurant operating subsidiary, CaliBurger, will expand in 2018 throughout North America, the Middle East, Asia and Latin America. The company also announced that its face-based loyalty and payment ordering kiosks as well as Flippy, the burger flipping robot, will be available at multiple CaliBurger locations this year.
“Every new CaliBurger restaurant is being designed with an eye toward implementation of the technologies being developed by Cali Group’s affiliated companies,” said Jonathan Wong, Chief Operating Officer of CaliBurger. “Our goal in the next 12 to 24 months is to begin deploying the unified Cali Group C-Vision™ technology platform, where the entire restaurant — from front of the house to back of the house — is operated from one app on a single tablet.” New CaliBurger locations coming in 2018 include:
North America
In North America, the brand currently operates restaurants and food trucks in the Pacific Northwest, Southern California and the DMV (Washington D.C., Maryland, and Virginia area). New locations currently under construction in these markets are:
• British Columbia, Canada (10330 152 St, Surrey, BC) • British Columbia, Canada (8901 Cornerstone Mews, Burnaby, BC) • Seattle, Wash. (Westlake Village Mall) • Additionally, later in 2018, CaliBurger is planning to open new in-line restaurants in the Washington D.C. area and drive thru formats in Maryland. Following, will be a flagship store in Santa Monica, slated to arrive by the end of the year.
Middle East
CaliBurger has more restaurants in the Middle East than any other region. New stores currently under construction include:
• Ras Al Khaimah, United Arab Emirates (Al Mansar Mall) • Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (Moj Plaza) • Plus, the brand is planning to open additional stores throughout 2018 in the UAE, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.
Asia
In Asia, CaliBurger is repositioning the brand to be higher end, moving away from a QSR and leaning into casual dining. New locations include:
• Manila, Philippines: a new flagship restaurant, debuting the latest store presentation
Latin America
CaliBurger plans to expand faster in Latin America than any other region of the world. The regional flagship, a 400 square meter drive thru, opened in Puebla, Mexico in early 2018. The company also plans to launch additional new markets in Latin America later this year, for a total of 15 restaurant openings in the region. Four stores are currently under construction in Mexico, including:
• Puebla, Mexico (Calz. Ignacio Zaragoza 410) • Puebla, Mexico (Plaza Sinfonía) • Hermosillo, Mexico (Bulevar José María Morelos 248) • Ciudad Juárez, Mexico (Plaza Tres 08)
Cali Group’s state -of-the-art technology will be on display at the International Franchise Expo to be held in Mexico City on March 1-3 in Booth 1410. To schedule a demo and interview at the show, please contact [email protected].
ABOUT CALIBURGER CaliBurger is a 21st century revival of the classic California burger joint. Our founders are California-bred with global ambitions, bringing the best of California culture, technology, imagery and food to markets that have long craved the famous California style burger. CaliBurger provides a premium quality burger experience at an accessible QSR price point. CaliBurger now operates in 12 countries. CaliBurger’s products feature the highest quality beef, buns baked fresh, top-grade chicken, hand-selected vegetables, zero trans-fat oils, sauces made in house, and hand-mixed shakes. Our made-to-order meals are always prepared in open kitchens, and our restaurants incorporate advanced technologies to create a unique dining experience. CaliBurger customers can enjoy a taste of California in an environment that looks, smells, and feels like California. For more information, please visit www.caliburger.com.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform
CALI GROUP BEGINS TAKING FACE BASED PAYMENTS IN ITS RESTAURANT OPERATING SUBSIDIARY
PASADENA, CA, Jan. 26, 2018 – Cali Group, a pioneer in developing innovative technologies for the restaurant and retail industries, announced today the launch of a face-based payment pilot program at CaliBurger, its restaurant operating subsidiary, in Pasadena, California, where the Quick Serve Restaurant chain showcases new technologies developed by its parent company. The program, which will be available to the public on Tuesday, January 30th, enables the customer to pay with a glance at the camera without ever needing to swipe a credit card.
In late 2017, Cali Group launched face based loyalty login on its large format self ordering kiosks. Customers login to their loyalty accounts at the self ordering kiosks without needing to type in any identifying information. Now, in addition to accessing their loyalty account by looking at the camera on the kiosk, customers can also complete the transaction by looking at the camera.
“The positive customer reaction to face based loyalty login at the kiosks encouraged us to quickly deploy face based payments at the kiosks,” said John Miller, CEO of Cali Group. “To our knowledge, this is the first time in America that customers in a retail environment can pay without needing a physical or digital wallet.”
Privacy and security are a top priority for Cali Group. Cali Group’s face based system requires a two-step authentication process. In addition to smiling at the camera, the customer will also need to enter a 3-digit CVV number from their credit card to process the transaction. Longer run, after demonstrating that face based authentication of payments is significantly more secure than swiping credit cards, Cali Group plans to eliminate the entry of the CVV number and only require a smile to authenticate the transaction.
“NEC is a leading innovator in delivering retail technologies and solutions from the point of sale to the back office and beyond,” said Matt Worley, Vice President of NEC Retail Solutions. “Cali Group’s face payment technology powered by NEC can be used to reinvent the customer experience and reduce transaction costs for merchants.”
Face based payment is a component of Cali Group’s unified C -Vision™platform, which ties together software products developed by Cali Group’s affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. If customers are pleased with the new ordering and payment experience, the face-based payment feature will be rolled out to CaliBurger’s global locations.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group’s C-Vision platform ties together the various software products developed by its affiliated companies to enable the entire restaurant to be controlled from one operating system run on a tablet. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the C-Vision platform.
ABOUT NEC CORPORATION OF AMERICA NEC Corporation of America (NEC) is a leading technology integrator providing solutions that improve the way people work and communicate. NEC delivers integrated Solutions for Society that are aligned with our customers’ priorities to create new value for people, businesses and society, with a special focus on safety, security and efficiency. We deliver one of the industry’s strongest and most innovative portfolios of communications, analytics, security, biometrics and technology solutions that unleash customers’ productivity potential. Through these solutions, NEC combines its best-inclass solutions and technology, and leverages a robust partner ecosystem to solve today’s most complex business problems. NEC Corporation of America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global technology leader with a presence in 160 countries and $25 billion in revenues. For more information, please visit www.necam.com.
CALI GROUP DEMONSTRATES FACE BASED LOYALTY PROGRAM PILOT IN ITS RESTAURANT OPERATING DIVISION
New AI-Enabled Self Ordering Kiosks Available at CaliBurger Pasadena, Showcase at NRF 2018
PASADENA, CA – December 19, 2017 – Cali Group and NEC Corporation of America today unveiled new AI-enabled self-ordering kiosks at CaliBurger, Cali Group’s restaurant operating division. The kiosks use NEC’s NeoFace® facial recognition software to identify registered customers and pull up their loyalty accounts and order preferences. The kiosk pilot program is now at CaliBurger’s Pasadena location, where the Quick Serve Restaurant chain showcases new technologies developed by its parent company. If customers are pleased with the new ordering experience, the kiosks will be rolled out to CaliBurger’s global locations next year. Also in 2018, the platform will be used to allow customers to pay using their faces.
As shown in the demo video, customers will have the option of immediately activating their loyalty accounts as they approach the kiosks without needing to swipe a card or type in identifying information. The loyalty account shows a customer’s favorite historical meal packages, enabling the customer to complete the ordering transaction in a matter of seconds. “Face-based loyalty significantly reduces the friction associated with loyalty program registration and use; further, it enables a restaurant chain like CaliBurger to provide a customized, one-on-one interactive experience at the ordering kiosk,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group. “Our goal for 2018 is to replace credit card swipes with face-based payments. Facial recognition is part of our broader strategy to enable the restaurant and retail industries to provide the same kinds of benefits and conveniences in the built world that customers experience with retailers like Amazon in the digital world.”
In addition to using facial recognition to enhance and improve the customer experience in restaurants, Cali Group is pioneering: AI and robotics to automate kitchen equipment and monitor the dining area; social gaming for entertainment in the dining area; and infrastructure for autonomous vehicles to deliver fresh food.
Cali Group worked with global technology firm NEC Corporation of America to integrate NEC’s facial recognition technology into its loyalty program. In 2017, the US National Institute of
Standards and Technology ranked NEC’s platform the most accurate in the world for one-to-many searching.
“NEC’s face recognition software technology is considered among the world’s most accurate, making it an ideal tool for retailers seeking to provide the best possible customer service and convenience for their customers,” said Matt Worley, Vice President, Retail Solutions, NEC Corporation of America. “We are committed to helping Cali Group reinvent the customer experience in the best ways possible, and I encourage anyone attending NRF 2018 to come see a demonstration of the technology in action.”
Cali Group’s new facial recognition self-ordering kiosks will be on display at NRF 2018 | Retail’s Big Show in New York City on January 14-16 in Booth 3153. To schedule a demo and interview at the show, please contact [email protected].
Editor’s Note: Please credit video and visuals to Cali Group. Additional video clips here.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering restaurant and retail operating software systems to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
About NEC Corporation of America NEC Corporation of America (NEC) is a leading technology integrator providing solutions that improve the way people work and communicate. NEC delivers integrated Solutions for Society that are aligned with our customers’ priorities to create new value for people, businesses and society, with a special focus on safety, security and efficiency. We deliver one of the industry’s strongest and most innovative portfolios of communications, analytics, security, biometrics and technology solutions that unleash customers’ productivity potential. Through these solutions, NEC combines its best-in-class solutions and technology, and leverages a robust partner ecosystem to solve today’s most complex business problems. NEC Corporation of America is a wholly-owned subsidiary of NEC Corporation, a global technology leader with a presence in 160 countries and $25 billion in revenues.
CALI GROUP TO EXPAND USE OF ITS POP ADVERTISING PLATFORM TO DRIVE CALIBURGER SALES
Walkers Will Wear “Cali Coins” That Can Be Captured, Purchased, and Redeemed For Food At Substantial Discounts
October 9, 2017 – Cali Group, a technology company focused on transforming the restaurant and retail industries, announced today that it is expanding use of its PoP wearable advertising platform to further drive sales at its restaurant division, CaliBurger. The first marketing campaigns using the PoP platform took place in areas surrounding CaliBurger units on the West Coast, where “Walkers” wore digital displays (integrated into backpacks) showing special offers taking place inside of the restaurants. The campaigns were a cost effective tool to increase store sales.
The next phase will involve sale of “Cali Coins” through the wearable digital display network. Consumers will have the opportunity to identify Cali Coins on the backs of Walkers in public places and use their mobile devices to immediately capture and purchase the Cali Coins. The Cali Coins can then be exchanged for food at substantial discounts in a local CaliBurger restaurant using the self ordering kiosks.
The restaurant and retail industries sell billions of dollars of coupons through various online distribution channels. There is little differentiation between the different online platforms, and the audience reach is limited. PoP enables restaurants, retailers, and consumer brands to deliver digital coupons and digital coins to a broad audience dwelling in the built world within hundreds of yards of their locations. “The PoP platform is a key component of the restaurant and retail operating system of the future that Cali Group is pioneering,” said John Miller, Chairman of Cali Group. “In addition to delivering immediate ROI at the store level, PoP increases enrollment by Millennials and Gen Z in the CaliBurger loyalty program.”
Separate from CaliBurger, PoP is also in pilot trials with other retailers and consumer brands at trade shows, on college campuses, and in malls and other densely populated retail areas. PoP’s wearable machine vision system provides ad buyers with detailed data about the targeted viewers.
ABOUT POP PoP is a smart, micro-location marketing and commerce platform, powered by machine vision and artificial intelligence. PoP helps offline businesses drive profitable growth by influencing high-potential customers with near-me offers and content, delivered in intent-rich moments. By seamlessly blending content and commerce, PoP’s fresh and engaging format creates durable brand affinity and loyalty across user segments, while simultaneously building rich shopper behavior and location intelligence. ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering restaurant and retail software systems to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
CALI GROUP ANNOUNCES FINANCING FOR MISO ROBOTICS
Capital To Be Used To Deploy “Flippy” In CaliBurger Restaurants
July 6, 2017 – Cali Group announced today that Miso Robotics has received over $3 million in funding from strategic investors, including Acacia Research and Match Robotics VC. The press release describing the financing can be viewed at goo.gl/bnK6nS. Miso was co-founded and funded by Cali Group in 2016 to revolutionize the restaurant industry with machine vision, artificial intelligence, and robotics. Miso will use the funding to deploy in CaliBurger restaurants its first commercial product, an AI-driven robotic kitchen assistant named “Flippy” that works alongside kitchen staff to improve operational efficiency for the restaurant industry.
“While the biggest companies in the world are focused on using computer vision and artificial intelligence to drive cars and manage the home, Cali Group will facilitate and lead the adoption of these emerging technologies in the restaurant and retail industries,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group.
Miso received worldwide attention following the initial debut of Flippy in CaliBurger’s restaurant in Pasadena, California. Miso and CaliBurger were featured in TechCrunch (https://goo.gl/hM4oa6), Forbes (https://goo.gl/1QnkTC ), Fortune (https://goo.gl/FWL48X ), and Fox News (https://goo.gl/fWDNnP). And on July 4th, Miso demonstrated a Flippy 2.0 prototype cooking patties on existing kitchen equipment with a standard spatula on CNBC, at https://goo.gl/pAzozZ.
Cali Group’s mission is to transform the restaurant and retail industries with new technology platforms. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate operational proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies. In addition to CaliBurger and Miso Robotics, Cali Group also has significant ownership positions in Super League Gaming, FunWall, and PopPacks.
ABOUT CALI GROUP Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering software systems for restaurant and retail operators to drive revenue, lower costs,
coll ect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.
CALI GROUP TO DEMONSTRATE ITS “MOBILE ADVERTISING” PLATFORM TO MARKET CALIBURGER BRAND AND DRIVE STORE SALES
POPpack’s Machine Vision Software Offers a Pay Per View Advertising Model On Wearable Displays
PASADENA, June 30th – Cali Group announced today that its subsidiary, CaliBurger, will begin marketing campaigns in July using POPpacks, the first “mobile advertising” platform based on machine vision. The campaigns will take place around CaliBurger’s restaurants in Seattle, Los Angeles, and Maryland. Through POPpack’s automated marketplace, CaliBurger will deliver customized messages to digital displays integrated into backpacks worn by Millennials and Centennials walking within hundreds of yards of CaliBurger’s locations. POPpack’s proprietary machine vision system (leveraging the camera on the display) offers brands like CaliBurger the ability to pay based on the number of people that see the messages. Similar to Uber, as shown in the video, “walkers” can earn income through the mobile App.
“Our mission at Cali Group is to use new technologies to transform the restaurant and retail industries and aggregate data about the offline world,” said John Miller, Chairman and CEO of Cali Group. “Cali Group invested in POPpacks to enable restaurants, retailers, and brands to have personal brand ambassadors deliver messages in places that have been traditionally inaccessible.”
The initial launch of the platform allows walkers to buy a custom POPpacks backpack, insert their iPad, and download the POPpacks app to begin making money. As featured on Episode 2 of Apple’s new TV show, Planet of the Apps, POPpacks is also developing its own flexible display hardware integrated into backpacks that is low cost, daylight readable, shatterproof, and can last for months without needing to be charged. In addition to POPpacks, Cali Group also has significant ownership positions in Super League Gaming, FunWall, and Miso Robotics.
ABOUT CALI GROUP
Cali Group is a holding company that comprises CaliBurger, a global restaurant chain, and its affiliated technology companies. Cali Group is pioneering software systems for restaurant and retail operators to drive revenue, lower costs, collect data, and improve operations. Cali Group uses its CaliBurger restaurant chain to demonstrate proof of concept and lead the commercial adoption of the software products developed by its sister companies.