Robots make mistakes, too. Is there a long way to go before fully automated coffee technology matures?

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A coffee robot at the Metreon Shopping Mall in SoMa, San Francisco, recently had a midlife crisis. Customers find that it is dancing from time to time, customers place orders, but sometimes it is unable to deliver coffee as required.

The coffee robot, located in Metreon Food Court, is the earliest robot barista (robot barista) in San Francisco and began service in January 2017. According to some customers, its lattes is tasty, fixed and does not accept tips, so it has a lot of fans.

But recently, somehow, it has been out of order, saying by customers that it may have a "midlife crisis". First of all, robot software is changing with each passing day. It has been more than two years old, and it is not surprising that it has become "middle-aged".

In addition, Cafe X, the company to which the robot belongs, modified it a few months ago to add some new features, and since then it has shaken from time to time, and its work is no longer as neat as it used to be.

For example, a few days ago, it was surrounded by a group of customers who attended a video game conference and were very adventurous and ordered two drinks that robots didn't often make, so the robot couldn't handle it. A shop assistant had to rush out to rescue the robot.

Another time, the robot malfunctioned. It was going to pick up a cup, but before it got it, the latte was poured out and all into the wash plate. It then picked up another cup, but it did not aim at the cup, only the air.

Cafe X says they have added two robotic baristas in the financial district and will add another one at the airport this fall. Metreon's machine is their earliest one, although the modification is not effective, and the new robot is "younger" and performs better.