³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾

Automating food is unlike automating anything else. Food is fundamental to life – nourishing body and soul – so how it’s accessed, prepared and consumed can change societies fundamentally.

Automated kitchens aren’t sci-fi visions from “The Jetsons” or “Star Trek.” The technology is and . Right now, robots are used to , , , , , , , and much more. AI can based on the of ingredients or whatever a kitchen has . More advanced concepts are in the works to automate the for fine dining.

Since technology tends to be expensive at first, the early adopters of AI kitchen technologies are restaurants and other businesses. Over time, prices are likely to fall enough for the , possibly changing both home and societal dynamics.

Can food technology really change society? Yes, just consider the of the . With that technology, it was suddenly possible to make a quick meal for just one person, which can be a benefit but also a social disruptor.

Familiar concerns about the technology include worse nutrition and health from and . Less obviously, that convenience can also transform eating from a into a utilitarian act of survival – altering relationships, traditions, how people work, the art of cooking and other facets of life for millions of people.

For instance, think about how different life might be without the microwave. Instead of working at your desk over a reheated lunch, you might have to venture out and talk to people, as well as enjoy a break from work. There’s something to be said for living more slowly in a society that’s and .

Convenience can come at a great cost, so it’s vital to look ahead at the possible ethical and social disruptions that emerging technologies might bring, especially for a deeply human and cultural domain – food – that’s interwoven throughout daily life.

With , my is halfway into what we believe is the first study of the effects AI kitchens and robot cooks could have on diverse societies and cultures worldwide. We’ve mapped out three broad areas of benefits and risks to examine.

Creators and consumers

The include enabling chefs to be , as well as eliminating repetitive, tedious tasks such as peeling potatoes or standing at a workstation for hours. The technology can free up time. Not having to cook means being able to spend more time with family or focus on more urgent tasks. For personalized eating, AI can , allergies and tastes on demand.

However, there are also risks to human well-being. Cooking can be and provides opportunities : gratitude, learning, creativity, communication, adventure, self-expression, growth, independence, confidence and more, all of which may be lost if no one needs to cook. Family relationships could be if parents and children are no longer – a safe space to chat, in contrast to what can feel like an interrogation at the dining table.

The kitchen is also the , so science education could suffer. The alchemy of cooking involves teaching children and other learners about microbiology, physics, chemistry, materials science, math, cooking techniques and tools, food ingredients and their sourcing, human health and problem-solving. Not having to cook can erode these skills and knowledge.

Community and cultures

AI can help with experimentation and creativity, such as creating and novel recipes within the spirit of a culture. Just as AI and robotics help generate , they can increase understanding of, say, the properties of food ingredients, their interactions and cooking techniques, including new methods.

But there are risks to culture. For example, AI could bastardize traditional recipes and methods, since , for example flattening or oversimplifying cultural details and distinctions. This selection bias could lead to reduced diversity in the kinds of cuisine produced by AI and robot cooks. Technology developers could become gatekeepers for food innovation, if the limits of their machines lead to homogeneity in cuisines and creativity, similar to the weirdly similar feel of across different apps.

Also, think about your favorite restaurants and favorite dinners. How might the character of those neighborhoods change with automated kitchens? Would it degrade your own gustatory experience if you knew those cooking for you weren’t your friends and family but instead were robots?

The hope with technology is that more than jobs lost. Even if there’s a net gain in jobs, the numbers hide the impact on real human lives. Many in the food service industry – one of the most in any economy – could find themselves unable to learn new skills for a different job. Not everyone can be an AI developer or robot technician, and it’s far from clear that supervising a robot is a better job than cooking.

Philosophically, it’s still an open question whether AI is , particularly if that implies inspiration and intuition. Assuming so may be the same mistake as thinking that a chatbot , instead of merely generating words that statistically follow the previous words. This has implications for aesthetics and authenticity in AI food, similar to ongoing debates about .

Safety and responsibility

Because humans are a key , robot cooks can improve food safety. Precision trimming and other , along with AI recipes that can make the fullest use of ingredients. Customized meals can be a benefit for nutrition and health, for example, in helping people avoid allergens and excess salt and sugar.

The technology is still emerging, so it’s unclear whether those benefits will be realized. Foodborne illnesses are an unknown. Will AI and robots be able to , or otherwise sense the freshness of an ingredient or the lack thereof and perform other safety checks?

Physical safety is another issue. It’s important to ensure that a robot chef doesn’t accidentally cut, burn or or other error. AI chatbots have been advising people to and , so it’s not a stretch to think that AI recipes could be flawed, too. Where legal regimes are still struggling to sort out liability for , it may similarly be tricky to figure out liability for robot cooks, including if hacked.

Given the primacy of food, food technologies help shape society. The kitchen has a special place in homes, neighborhoods and cultures, so disrupting that venerable institution requires careful thinking to optimize benefits and reduce risks.

Patrick Lin receives funding from the US ³Ô¹ÏÍøÕ¾ Science Foundation for this work.