Travel Tech Tokyo:
Unmanned Robot Restaurant Offers a Futuristic Experience

A New Base for Innovation Is Born in Haneda

HICity is Japan's first futuristic smart airport city. A part of it opened early in July 2020, followed by a grand opening in November 2023. Under the concept of "innovation for all who come," it features offices and commercial facilities promoting Japanese culture, research and development sites for advanced medicine, and convention venue functions. HICity has become a base for creating new possibilities.

AI_SCAPE opened in HICity in April 2022 as a restaurant where robots handle everything from cooking to serving. Once customers place an order using the web app, accessed via a QR code provided at the table, a robot in the kitchen starts to cook by heating a retort food pouch. Once the food is set on a tray, the service robot Nyokkey carries it to the table.

Social Robots Will Help Solve Labor Shortages

Although AI_SCAPE is a restaurant, it also functions as a proof-of-concept (PoC) experiment site where humans and robots coexist and work together to solve social challenges. Goda Itsuki from Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI), who operates the restaurant, said, "Our mission as a robot manufacturer is to help solve the challenges faced by businesses struggling with critical labor shortages by developing service robots."

KHI decided to take part in the initiative after being approached by HICity with the opportunity to co-create. The project members ran into various challenges to create a restaurant run solely by robots. These included designing cup sizes that could be grasped by the cooking robot, selecting the material to be used for the frozen food pouches, designing the restaurant floor to allow the serving robot to move around, and designing the tables and seats to ensure accurate position recognition and smooth serving.

While Goda experienced how difficult it is to create a place where robots and humans coexist, he said the key was clearly dividing which tasks are to be done by humans and which are to be automated. "Our goal for Nyokkey is versatility. Although its only job at AI_SCAPE is serving food, we are also engaged in PoC experiments with other companies for different use cases, such as logistics in a hospital, office cleaning, and security at factories and other facilities.

Seeking New Possibilities through Seamless Collaboration

Since KHI's robot design and production sites are concentrated in the Kansai region in western Japan, Goda said having a PoC experiment site in Haneda is very significant. A section of the restaurant is rented out to a venture company working on AI-driven robot control, providing it with a base for development. Goda works with them on developing Nyokkey's movements, and they are able to swiftly and repeatedly conduct experiments on the spot.

Although AI_SCAPE opened in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is drawing a lot of international attention. Many Asian countries have a love for all things new, and the former Prime Minister of Thailand, Prayuth Chan-ocha, even came to visit and observe the restaurant. An increasing number of international media companies are also conducting interviews, such as Swedish and German TV stations. Some tourists also visit after learning about the restaurant from social media influencers. This raises hopes for greater demand from inbound tourists going forward.

Take a look at the possibilities of the future with your own eyes at AI_SCAPE, which is gaining attention as a new Haneda landmark.

Movie: Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd. (KHI)