Insider Brief
- Appetronix acquired Cibotica to expand beyond robotic pizza kitchens and accelerate deployment of automated kitchen systems across multiple cuisines, with deal terms undisclosed.
- The acquisition adds Cibotica’s Remy automated bowl and salad assembly system and its ingredient-agnostic dispensing platform, which can assemble up to 300 bowls per hour, reduce labor costs by up to 30% and cut food waste by 50% through AI-driven portioning.
- Appetronix, which operates robotic pizza kitchens with Donatos including an autonomous location at John Glenn Columbus International Airport, said the deal follows its recent $12 million seed round and supports expansion into airports, hospitals, universities and other high-traffic venues.
PRESS RELEASE — Appetronix, the pioneering robotics company transforming foodservice through intelligent automation, today announced it has acquired Cibotica, a leader in proprietary ingredient dispensing and portioning technology. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. The deal brings Cibotica’s flagship product, an automated bowl and salad assembly system, to Appetronix along with the company’s proprietary ingredient-agnostic dispensing platform, enabling Appetronix to rapidly scale robotic kitchen concepts across multiple cuisines beyond its current pizza operations.
“This acquisition represents far more than just expanding our technology stack. It’s about elevating the entire food robotics ecosystem,” said Nipun Sharma, CEO of Appetronix. “We’ve worked closely with the Cibotica team for years, watching them build breakthrough technology that solves real operational challenges, and bring it to market through their partnership with MOTO Pizza in Seattle, WA. Bringing them into the Appetronix family allows us to scale new cuisine formats faster while demonstrating that the food robotics space can create meaningful exits for innovative founders.”
Appetronix currently operates robotic pizza kitchens through its partnership with Donatos, including a fully autonomous location at John Glenn Columbus International Airport and another location opening this Spring. The addition of Cibotica’s dispensing technology positions Appetronix to launch robotic concepts across multiple cuisines and other formats requiring precise ingredient portioning.
Cibotica’s Remy is distinguished by its ingredient-agnostic technology that works with any ingredient, compact modular design that integrates under-counter into existing layouts, and turn-key integration with all mainstream ordering, POS, and back-of-house systems. The platform can assemble up to 300 bowls per hour, reduce labor costs by up to 30%, and minimize food waste by 50% through AI-driven precise portioning. Remy’s proprietary dispensing library uses machine learning to achieve precision accuracy across diverse ingredient types.
“We founded Cibotica with a simple conviction: the best robotic solutions come from understanding the operator’s world first.” said Ashkan Mirnabavi, Co-Founder of Cibotica. “This acquisition validates that approach and signals that the food robotics ecosystem is ready to deliver real outcomes for the industry.”
Strengthening the Food Tech Ecosystem
The acquisition comes at a pivotal moment for food robotics. While the sector has attracted significant attention, successful exits remain rare. By creating a pathway for innovative startups like Cibotica to join larger platforms, Appetronix aims to demonstrate the viability of building in this space.
“Our collaboration with Cibotica demonstrates our commitment to building a sustainable food robotics ecosystem globally,” added Sharma. “We’re acquiring technology that was built by a team that truly understands the operational challenges we’re solving.”
The acquisition follows Appetronix’s recent announcement of over $12 million in total seed funding, led by AlleyCorp and the Grote family. The combined resources position Appetronix to accelerate deployment of multiple robotic kitchen concepts across airports, hospitals, entertainment venues, universities, and other high-traffic institutional environments. “Appetronix’s track record with Donatos proved they can execute,” said Soroush Sefidkar, Co-Founder of Cibotica. “This partnership allows our dispensing technology to reach its full potential.”
Image credit: CNW Group/Appetronix Inc.
