At the moment, robotic bartenders are costly—but some startups are aiming to make them competitive with human mixologists.
Automating alcohol: The Tipsy Robot, a Las Vegas bar, has an employee that cost more than $1 million to hire. Its robot bartender, created by Makr Shakr, can sling up to 120 drinks an hour at $12 to $16 a pop. This touristy establishment is the type of setting where cosmos and whiskey sours would be a dime a dozen—if they weren’t so expensive.
But … Prices are plummeting (for the robots, anyway). Makr Shakr has just released a mass-market version of its drink-serving machine that costs $115,000. And next month, New York–based startup Barsys will release a $2,500 commercial version of a microwave-size robot bartender. The home version is even less—just $1,050.
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