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• But managers at several outlets said the robots haven’t proved as reliable or cost-effective as human servers.Wang Long, the manager of a Beijing outlet, said his two robots have both have broken down.“We only used them now and then,” Wang said.
• A robot costs around $15,000, he said, but a person costs $5,000 to $6,000 per month.Zhai said the robots give human servers more time to mingle with customers, which increases tips.
• Saru Jayaraman, who advocates for higher pay for restaurant workers as president of One Fair Wage, said restaurants could easily solve their labor shortages if they just paid workers more.“Humans don’t go to a full-service restaurant to be served by technology,” she said.
• The school’s restaurant began using a robot in December, and Reynolds says it has eased the workload for human staff and made service more efficient.But others say robot waiters aren’t much more than a gimmick that have a long way to go before they can replace humans.
• Shenzen, China-based Pudu Robotics, which was founded in 2016, has deployed more than 56,000 robots worldwide.“Every restaurant chain is looking toward as much automation as possible,” said Phil Zheng of Richtech Robotics, an Austin-based maker of robot servers.
• The robot didn’t seem to be replacing staff, he said; he counted 13 employees in the store, and workers told him the robot helps service move a little faster.