Robochefs whip up dishes in an instant

At the canteen in the Main Media Center for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympic Games, hamburgers are made in 20 seconds, and Cantonese clay pot rice is ready as soon as customers scan a QR code.

About 10 different intelligent cooking machines developed by the Qianxi Robotics Group from Guangdong province stand ready to serve hungry visitors from around the world. "The use of catering robots has helped diversify the variety of foods we can prepare and has greatly increased efficiency," said Zhong Zhanpeng, manager of the intelligent canteen.

According to Zhong, the robots are not only able to cook dozens of traditional Chinese dishes, such as Kung Pao chicken and dongporou, a popular pork dish, but also make a variety of staples like spaghetti with meat sauce and Cantonese fried rice.

"The robot chefs, which have already been used at scenic spots, exhibition halls and transportation stations across the country, are now being used at a major sports event for the first time," said Xiao Ran, vice-general manager of the Qianxi Robotics Group.

The intelligent canteen, which is 3,680 square meters in size, is capable of handling thousands of customers at a time, serving both Chinese and Western dishes.

"Robot chefs can work very efficiently 24 hours a day, serving food to customers at any hour of the day," Xiao said.

The canteen is serving around 5,000 media workers every day during the ongoing Games.

Qianxi Robotics Group's catering robots were first used at an intelligent restaurant in June 2020 in Foshan, Guangdong, where the company is based.

"There is huge potential in the robot catering market, and we are dedicated to becoming a leader in the field," Xiao said.

The use of robots should also help prevent and control transmission of COVID-19, as they reduce personal contact in line with current needs for social distancing, Xiao said.

Set up by Chinese property developer Country Garden in 2019, Qianxi operates a smart factory with 14 advanced processing lines and is capable of producing 60,000 catering robots a year, according to sources with the company.