Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Food & Drink

British Airways Is Bringing AI-Powered Robot Bartenders to U.S. Airports

Mike Richard
By

One day soon, when the robots finally take over and enslave us all, we’ll wonder where it all went wrong. Should we have seen the signs? Replacing human bartenders with AI-powered automatons seems a likely start. British Airways is tempting fate anyway by trialing “robot” bartenders at two major U.S. airports.

We’ve all had that moment of impatient rage after standing for more than 60 seconds at the bar without service. You mutter to yourself and anyone within earshot, “Who do I have to murder to get a drink around here?” British Airways just announced a possible end to those moments with a new, highly efficient “robot” bartender at two airport lounges. It’s not a robot in the traditional, apocalyptic-Skynet-killing-machine sense, but rather a sophisticated automated device capable of dispensing 30 specific cocktails. Anything more complicated will still require a living human.

barsys robot bartender
Barsys/Facebook

The program was designed by Barsys, an innovator in smart bar technology for the home. Customers can order a drink through the British Airways app, place a cocktail glass on the system’s conveyer belt, and let the robot work its magic. British Airways is even debuting two locally inspired cocktails — dubbed Echo-Whisky-Romeo and Silicon Galley — as a nod to the program’s two trial locations in Newark and San Francisco.

Recommended Videos

There’s something to be said for ruthless mixological efficiency. Indeed, the Barsys system can dispense a precisely measured cocktail in just 45 seconds. That’s a welcome promise for air travelers on a tight schedule. But, most airport lounge customers choose to skip a grab-and-go beer at Chili’s because they have a little extra time on their hands. They’re unlikely to be concerned with making a 20-minute connection. For those passengers — and for us here at The Manual — we don’t mind waiting an extra minute or two for a human-poured cocktail with a side of legit human interaction.

Thankfully, Barsys CEO and founder, Akshet Tewari, assures us that lounge bartenders aren’t going away any time soon. The system is simply designed to “free them up to make more complicated drinks and interact with customers.”

The Barsys AI-powered bartender is part of a massive, multi-billion-dollar plan for British Airways to improve the passenger experience over the next five years. The airline is trialing Barsys for First and Club World passengers only at Newark and San Franciso International until March 2020.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Mike Richard
Mike Richard
Contributor
Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…
Cocktail classics: the Negroni and its millions of variations
Negroni

Of all the classic cocktails that are well-known in bars across the world, one stands out for being both complex fascinating to drink, but also incredibly easy to make: the negroni. This beloved cocktail from Italy consists of equal parts of gin, sweet vermouth, and Campari, and it doesn't even need to be shaken. Traditionally made in a mixing glass, where it is stirred with ice to add water, in practice you can even add the ingredients to a tumbler glass with a large ice cube and stir it in the glass. That isn't really the technically correct way to make the drink, but it works well enough and means that you can make this cocktail with practically no equipment whatsoever.
The negroni is popular for its intense, bitter flavors and its bright red color, both of which come from the Campari. But the addition of gin gives the drink that heavy, boozy note with plenty of spicy juniper, and the sweet vermouth adds a touch of sweetness and more herbal notes. The result is a drink which packs an incredible flavor punch, and which tends to be either loved or hated (mostly depending on how you feel about Campari).
Thanks to its simplicity, the negroni lends itself to endless variations. While in truth I think it's hard to beat the classic version of this cocktail, if you're a long-time negroni drinker and you're looking to try something new – or maybe even if you're not a fan of the classic negroni but are interested in finding a version which does work for you – then we've got suggestions on some of the many variations you can try.

Experimenting with gins

Read more
Gose-style beers are perfect for spring, and these are our favorites
This salty, tart, sour beer is perfect for spring.
Gose beer

As we mentioned in an earlier post, the Gose style might be the best beer choice for spring and summer drinking. This wheat beer is top-fermented and gets a second fermentation with lactobacillus bacteria. This gives it a tart, sour flavor profile similar to your favorite sour ale. The addition of coriander and sea salt adds some spice and salinity to this very unique, refreshing beer.

On top of that, this tart, salty thirst-quencher is usually between 4-5% ABV. This results in a crushable, salty, crisp beer you won’t be able to put down even between horseshoe throws or cornhole turns.
A strange, salty history

Read more
This is how to make a proper Moscow Mule
It's the classic cocktail in a copper mug, and we're going to show you how to make a Moscow Mule
Moscow Mule with a bowl of limes

You know you've made it as a cocktail when one of the most popular ready-to-drink options is made in your name. That's the case with the Moscow Mule cocktail, the classic mix of vodka and ginger beer, preferably in a copper mug.

Here are some pro tips to keep in mind. First, select a quality vodka. The flavor may be mostly buried in the rest of the drink, but you're still after smoothness. In terms of ginger, go with a proper ginger beer instead of ginger ale. The latter is far too sweet. If you're really feeling intrepid, do as Death & Co. does below and make your own ginger syrup to couple with club soda. You'll be amazed at how much more pronounced the ginger qualities are when going this route.

Read more