CloudChef

CloudChef develops commercial-kitchen robots offered through hourly rental for food preparation, cooking and packaging. Its three forms serve different workloads: CloudChef lite is a two-handed robot on a trolley for stationary tasks; CloudChef adds autonomous movement around the kitchen; and CloudChef pro handles bulk cooking and larger quantities of ingredients. The robots are designed to fit existing kitchens without changes to their layout or equipment.

Founded in 2018 by Nikhil Abraham, Atish Aloor and Mohit Shah, CloudChef initially used cameras, sensors and software to capture cooking processes and guide human kitchen staff. Abraham now serves as co-CEO. Its Zippy training and operation system applies demonstration-based learning to general-purpose, two-fingered robots. Video demonstrations teach cooking actions, while thermal cameras let robots observe the results—a way to capture aspects of cooking beyond written recipe instructions.

In 2026, the company reported that Zippy could prepare thousands of recipes across 17 cuisines, with deployments in restaurants, university, airline and corporate catering, and ghost kitchens. Its rental model lets operators use robots without buying equipment upfront. Advertised starting rates in 2026 were $12 per hour for lite, $16 for CloudChef and $20 for pro.