Richtech to Operate ‘Robot-Powered Restaurants’ at 20 More Walmart Locations

Richtech Robotics plans to use its robotics and artificial intelligence (AI) cloud technology to run 20 more Walmart-located restaurants in Arizona, Colorado and Texas.

The provider of AI-driven service robots has signed a binding letter of intent with Ghost Kitchens America in which the companies will enter into a franchise agreement and Richtech will acquire exclusive rights to operate the restaurants, the companies said in a Thursday (Oct. 17) press release.

Richtech Robotics already secured exclusive operational rights for the Ghost Kitchen at a Walmart location in Rockford, Illinois, and operates it through its subsidiary, AlphaMax Management, according to the release. It also signed a franchise agreement for another Walmart restaurant in Peachtree, Georgia, which is set to open later this year.

The company will use these high-traffic locations to bring greater visibility to its solutions, which it both sells and uses to operate its own “robot-powered restaurants,” Richtech Robotics President Matt Casella said in the release.

“Our restaurant operations will showcase the very same robotic and AI platforms offered through our RaaS [robotics-as-a-service] business model,” Casella said. “We expect these platforms to become a fast-growing and stable revenue stream for us as we leverage them to manage thousands, and eventually tens of thousands, of restaurant operations in the future.”

The company’s solutions are designed to boost operational efficiency and personalize customer experiences, according to the release.

The locations included in the agreement have strong sales numbers and steady customer traffic, Ghost Kitchens America CEO George Kottas said in the release.

“Based on our previous collaborations, Ghost Kitchens is confident that Richtech Robotics’ robotic technology and operational management services will maximize the performance of these restaurants,” Kottas said.

Walmart opened the first domestic in-Walmart ghost kitchen in Rochester, New York, in 2021 by expanding its Canadian partnership with Ghost Kitchen Brands to the United States.

“We want to offer consumers the freedom to use technology to order to get whatever they want, when they want it, where they want it,” Marc Choy, president of Ghost Kitchen Brands, told PYMNTS CEO Karen Webster in an interview posted in September 2021.

Men are twice as likely as women to have any interest in visiting robo-restaurants, according to the PYMNTS Intelligence report, “Connected Dining: The Robot Will Take Your Order Now.”

While 1 in 3 men are interested in visiting a restaurant that uses robotics, only half that share of women said the same, the report found.