AssetID: 54666523
Headline: RAW VIDEO: Scientists And Chefs Create Fully Edible Robot Wedding Cake
Caption: Scientists and chefs from Switzerland and Italy have built a robotic wedding cake you can eat in its entireity. As part of the EU-funded RoboFood project, researchers from EPFL in Switzerland and Italy’s Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia (IIT) teamed up with pastry chefs and food scientists from the EHL hospitality school in Lausanne to create an incredible feat of robotics and gastronomy. Their creation, the RoboCake, is being showcased at Expo 2025 in Osaka. “Robotics and food are two separate worlds,” explains Professor Dario Floreano, head of the Laboratory of Intelligent Systems (LIS) at EPFL and coordinator of the RoboFood project. “However, merging them offers many advantages, particularly in terms of limiting electronic waste and food waste.” Scientists are also exploring applications in emergency nutrition and healthcare. “Edible robots could be used to deliver food to endangered areas, to deliver medicines in innovative ways to people who have difficulty swallowing or to animals, or even to monitor food freshness using sensors that can be consumed.” At the heart of the project is the RoboCake – a robotic wedding cake showcasing the potential of this emerging field. It features two fully edible robotic teddy bears, developed by EPFL’s LIS. “They are made from gelatin, syrup and colourants,” says Bokeon Kwak, a researcher at LIS. “They are animated by an internal pneumatic system: when air is injected through dedicated pathways, their heads and arms move.” The bears, which move and dance on the cake, have a flavour described as soft, sweet pomegranate gummies. IIT researchers led by Dr Mario Caironi have developed the world’s first edible rechargeable battery, crafted from vitamin B2, quercetin, activated carbon – and chocolate. “These batteries, safe for consumption, can be used to light the LED candles on the cake,” says Valerio Galli, a PhD student at IIT. “The first flavour you get when you eat them is dark chocolate, followed by a surprising tangy kick, due to the edible electrolyte inside, which lasts a few seconds.” The innovation offers a potential solution to the global problem of electronic waste, which exceeds 40 million tonnes annually. To ensure the RoboCake was both safe and delicious, the researchers collaborated with culinary experts from EHL. “Our challenge was to find the best way to showcase the innovations of our two partners, EPFL and IIT, by adding what we do best: indulgence,” says Julien Boutonnet, Senior Lecturer at EHL and recipient of France’s prestigious Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) title in pastry and confectionery. “This is how the RoboCake was born – a true event cake, blending technique, electronics and taste.” “This interdisciplinary collaboration paves the way for interactive and delicious gastronomic experiences, reminding us that food is a precious resource – and possibly even helping to reduce overeating,” Floreano concludes. The RoboFood project, launched in 2021 with a budget of €3.5 million, is a four-year initiative funded by the European Union. It brings together researchers from EPFL, IIT, the University of Bristol, and Wageningen University in the Netherlands. The project aims to reimagine the future of food and robotics, creating edible robots and intelligent foods with applications in food preservation, healthcare, emergency response and culinary innovation.
Keywords: feature,photo,video,robotics,food,cake,technology,tech
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