Robotic kitchen startup Spyce announced the close of a $21 million Series A financing round. The company informed that the round was led by consumer investors Collaborative Fund and Maveron, with additional participation from existing investor Khosla Ventures. Funding also came from Chefs including Thomas Keller, Jerome Bocuse, and Gavin Kaysen, who join Culinary Director Daniel Boulud as prominent culinary angel investors in Spyce.
The company said that it will use the funding to open a number of restaurants on the East Coast and further develop their robotic culinary platform. Spyce expects to hire additional employees to roughly double in size over the next year. Spyce opened it first restaurant in Boston.
Spyce was founded in 2015 by four MIT graduates. “Spyce piqued my interest with their hospitality-first approach. Their use of innovative technology and engineering to deliver a consistent, reliable product is driven by the desire to best service their guests, which is what motivates me every day as a chef,” said Chef Gavin Kaysen of Spoon and Stable and Bellecour.
With this new funding, Michael Farid, CEO and cofounder, said “We're excited to open more restaurants and further develop our concept and technology to continue establishing our brand within the food community. Just as on day one, we remain singularly focused on delivering an unbelievable meal and experience each time someone visits Spyce.”
“Spyce's focus on delivering value and service to consumers, combined with their incredible product of delicious meals, has contributed to its early success and rabid fanbase,” said Craig Shapiro, Managing Director at Collaborative Fund. “Their ability to offer higher quality food at a reasonable price is a simple recipe for success.”
“Spyce has utilized an incredibly thoughtful approach in how they provide consumers with a stellar experience. Michael, Kale, Luke, and Brady are the kind of founders we're proud to back; people who can lead with humanity and put the customer first, all while leveraging technology to solve big problems. Paying fast food prices for high-quality meals is revolutionary and we think consumers will gravitate towards their craveable, exciting meals,” said Dan Levitan, Cofounder and Partner at Maveron.
“The technology they have built is impressive and enables better efficiency, thru-put, consistency, quality, and at a much more affordable price. The robotic kitchen makes healthy bowls more accessible to all people. With the technology married with a strong consumer experience and brand, they are reinventing the way restaurants are typically operated. We are excited to bring this food brand to more people in the U.S. and beyond,” said Vinod Khosla, Founder of Khosla Ventures.
