Chipotle Pilots 'Autocado' Robot for Guacamole Production Amid Industry Labor Shortages

Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. has partnered with Vebu Labs to test "Autocado," a robot designed to automate guacamole preparation. In an effort to streamline operations and combat labor shortages, the Autocado could potentially revolutionize the food service industry's approach to the popular Mexican dish.

As its name shows, Chipotle's Autocado is a combined word for "automatic" and "avocado." The machine prepares the unpeeled avocado fruit so it can easily be mashed to make the popular dip that originated in Mexico.

The restaurant chain teamed with Vebu Labs innovation studio to test out the Autocado robot solution for guacamole preparation. If the test is successful, the chain that mostly offers quesadillas, salads, and tacos may soon be permanently prepared by a robot instead of human staff.

As mentioned on CNN Business, Chipotle's Autocado robot will cut, remove the seed, and peel avocados. The staff must put the unpeeled fruits on the machine, and the robot will do the rest. Once done, the human staff has to take out the processed avocado where only the mesocarp or flesh of the fruit remains.

It was said that the company is starting to use robotic technology to cut costs like other fast-food brands today. For Chipotle, automating the guacamole preparation task is also a solution to labor shortages in the food service industry in the United States.

"We are committed to exploring collaborative robotics to drive efficiencies and ease pain points for our employees," Chipotle's chief customer and technology officer, Curt Garner, said in a press release. "The intensive labor of cutting, coring, and scooping avocados could be relieved with Autocado, but we still maintain the essential culinary experience of hand mashing and hand preparing the guacamole to our exacting standards."

Vebu Labs' chief executive officer, Buck Jordan, further stated, "Our purpose as a robotic company is to leverage automation technology to give workers more flexibility in their day-to-day work. Autocado has the potential to work alongside Chipotle crew members to create the same, delicious guacamole that Chipotle fans love but more efficiently than ever before."

Photo by: Chipotle Press Release