Sunnyvale, Cali. – Blendid, a leading innovator in the booming food automation and robotics sector, today announced the close of its latest oversubscribed round of crowdfunding. Hitting its $2 million target via 1,475 individual investors during a four-month campaign on StartEngine, Blendid has now raised a total of $20million in investment through a combination of traditional venture capital, strategic investors and crowdfunding. During its crowdfunding effort, Blendid signed a commercial agreement with a major commercial food service operator, which also made a strategic investment in the company, to help scale its manufacturing and operations so Blendid can achieve its mission of making healthy food more personalized and accessible nationwide.
“While robots are rapidly becoming part of the food service mix and countless vendors are vying for crowdfunding support, not all food robotic systems are created equal. It is critical to break through the buzz and marketing hype when evaluating options,” said Vipin Jain, CEO and co-founder of Blendid. “AI-powered robots play a primary role in the future of food service, and Blendid is committed to not only optimizing the consumer experience, but also helping food operators overcome labor shortages and post-pandemic demand complexities while improving operator margins. We’ve proven the strength of our technology platform with our first kiosk solution, but the Blendid food operating system will support different types of fresh fare, from smoothies to soups, bowls, salads, sandwiches and more in the years ahead as we embark on a new era of healthy fast food.”
Advances in robotics and artificial intelligence (AI), coupled with operational cost advantages and major consumer and retailer shifts, are driving the food industry to more rapidly embrace robotics that give consumers 24/7 access to fresh food. In fact, the food robotics market, estimated at $1.9 billion in 2020, is expected to reach $4.0 billion by 2026. Offering a compact, autonomous, contactless robotic food kiosk with unmatched in-market operating experience, Blendid solutions have served over 50K customer orders working with largeU.S. retail and food operator partners and can be installed in a wide range of locations to give consumers access to healthy, affordable, and delicious food anywhere.
With 10 patents, three trademarks, and a coveted NSF certification for its first product, Blendid’s proprietary, contactless food operating system (foodOS™) processes orders, payment, and pickup safely, efficiently and autonomously. Powered by breakthrough machine vision and artificial intelligence technology, its foodOSmeasures and dispenses precise amounts of a wide range of ingredients for customized drinks, and then blends, pours, and stores each smoothie until a guest is ready for pickup. The company’s cutting-edge design is supported by a network operation center that remotely manages all systems, making sure all Blendid robots can serve a freshly made, micro-customized smoothie within minutes and can process nine drinks simultaneously in high foot traffic areas. Check out a Blendid robot in action here.
Building on the success of its initial Northern California locations in retail stores and universities and boasting a pre-money valuation of $50million, Blendid is currently focused on growing its location footprint to increase its reach across the United States and perfect its food automation platform. Recently announcing its expansion plans to two new geographic areas, Blendid will use the additional funds to accelerate its expansion into the Southern California and Georgia markets with openings in a variety of venues such as malls, airports, hospitals, universities and retail stores. To learn more about Blendid’s crowdfunding investment history, please visit https://www.startengine.com/blendid.
About Blendid
Sunnyvale-based Blendid is on a mission to revolutionize the future of food service and has created a proprietary food automation platform (foodOS™) to efficiently and safely prepare and serve a range of healthy, fresh, and delicious food. Blendid’s first concept in the market is an autonomous and contactless robotic kiosk that uses robotics, machine vision, artificial intelligence, and healthy ingredients to create delicious smoothies. The drinks are ordered from the contactless safety of a cell phone and customized to meet the unique health and dietary preferences of each consumer. Blendid was founded in 2015 by Vipin Jain, Venki Ayalur, and Vijay Dodd, seasoned Silicon Valley entrepreneurs. As a pioneer of the future of food service, Blendid is improving the consumer experience by offering safe, cost-effective, and personalized food on-demand, while also reducing complexities and costs for the operators. Starting with whole fruits and vegetables, Blendid creates a tasty, healthy, touchless, affordable, and convenient meal or snack for the consumer – exactly how and when they want it.
About StartEngine
StartEngine is a leading equity crowdfunding platform in the U.S., where everyday people can find and invest in early-growth companies and startups. StartEngine has helped more than 375 companies raise $250M+ from a community of over 300,000 prospective investors. Based in Los Angeles, the company was launched in 2015 by Howard Marks, co-founder of Activision, and Ron Miller. StartEngine is committed to revolutionizing the ways companies raise capital through the JOBS Act and helping entrepreneurs achieve their dreams. StartEngine Crowdfunding Inc. is not a broker-dealer, funding portal or investment adviser. StartEngine Capital, LLC is a funding portal registered with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and a member of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA). StartEngine Primary LLC is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC and FINRA/SIPC.
