Insider Brief
- SoftBank Robotics is bringing its autonomous cooking robots “STEAMA” and “FLAMA” to the U.S. market, with the systems set to debut at the National Restaurant Association Show 2026 later this month.
- STEAMA is designed to prepare frozen noodle dishes in about 90 seconds using high-pressure steam, while FLAMA automates kitchen tasks including ingredient handling, stir-frying, plating and cleaning through integration with SyncKitchen recipe software.
- SoftBank Robotics said the expansion targets labor shortages, rising wage costs and operational consistency challenges across restaurants, corporate dining, retail food courts and prepared-food operations.
SoftBank Robotics is bringing its autonomous cooking robots to the U.S. market.
The company announced it will debut its “STEAMA” and “FLAMA” cooking systems at the National Restaurant Association Show 2026 in Chicago later this month as it expands its food automation business outside Japan.
“We’re excited to bring STEAMA and FLAMA the U.S. market and showcase our vision for the future of foodservice,” executive vice president Tatsuhiko Hata, RX&Food Business at SoftBank Robotics, said in the announcement. “These solutions are designed to enable operators to improve consistency, reduce operational complexity, and unlock greater value for both staff and customers.”
STEAMA is a steam-based cooking robot designed to prepare frozen noodle dishes in roughly 90 seconds using high-temperature, high-pressure steam. The system is intended to automate preparation while maintaining consistent texture, temperature and ingredient quality across servings, according to the company.
FLAMA automates a broader range of kitchen tasks, including ingredient handling, seasoning, stir-frying, plating and cleaning. The robot integrates with recipe management software called SyncKitchen, allowing restaurant operators to standardize dishes and distribute recipes across multiple locations.
Softbank Robotics noted the expansion reflects growing pressure across the restaurant, retail and prepared-food industries, where operators are facing persistent labor shortages, higher wage costs and employee turnover while also trying to meet consumer demand for faster and more consistent service.
SoftBank Robotics said its strategy goes beyond deploying standalone robots and instead focuses on redesigning kitchen workflows and operations around automation. The company is targeting applications across restaurants, corporate dining, technology campuses and retail food courts, where operators are increasingly seeking scalable foodservice systems that reduce dependence on manual labor.
