What the Coca-Cola Freestyle machine does for soft drinks, Monsieur does for cocktails. The brainchild of Barry Givens, ME 08, this Android-driven, robotic bartender was first conceived while Givens and his college friends were watching the NBA Finals at a restaurant in Atlanta several years ago. After placing an order for some cocktails before the game started, they found themselves waiting until halftime before their drinks finally arrived.
“The place was packed, and the bar was slammed with orders,” Givens says. “Being an engineering student, I couldn’t help but think there had to be an easier and faster way to make and serve those drinks.”
Givens sat on the idea for Monsieur for a few years, but after working in the corporate world, decided to start his own business and turn his idea into reality. He and co-founder Eric Williams, EE 08, MS ECE 12, built their first working prototype for the cocktail-mixing appliance in 2012. In the summer of 2013, they started demoing Monsieur to investors and interested parties. Along the way, startup veteran Paul Judge, MS CS 01, PhD CS 02, joined as an angel investor and company chairman, as did Mario Taylor,
Mgt 08, as chief operating officer, and Donald Beamer, Econ 05, as president.
Last fall, Givens and team showed Monsieur off at TechCrunch Disrupt in San Francisco, where the company was one of 30 startups—out of more than 2,000 applicants—selected to participate in the renowned Battlefield competition. Monsieur didn’t win, but it received significant buzz from the tech press, as well as much-wanted momentum.
Soon after, the company launched a Kickstarter campaign that raised $140,000, and secured additional angel and seed funding totaling more than $350,000. With promises to deliver home models to their investors, Monsieur’s creators finally had to figure out how to turn their working model into a manufacturable appliance.
“Luckily we secured a spot at Tech’s incubator, the Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC),” says Williams, who serves as Monsieur’s chief technology officer. “The ATDC has been invaluable in helping us take the next step. For example, when developing an electrical appliance, you have to obtain numerous certifications we knew little about.” Tech’s incubator also gave the Monsieur team some prime office space, and helped it connect to myriad startup resources.
At first glance, Monsieur looks like a boxy, modern vending machine, complete with a sophisticated Android-based touchscreen interface that makes choosing a mixed drink an easy and familiar process. “Inside, it’s connected to a microcontroller that orchestrates thermoelectric coolers, peristaltic pumps, sensors and other mechanical components to mix cocktails precisely,” Williams says. “And most drinks can be poured in less than 15 seconds, all to your specific tastes.”
What’s more, the Android interface can be controlled with smart devices via its Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. You can order up an after-work drink at home before you even walk in the door, and in commercial settings, concessions managers can monitor ingredient levels in real time. Rather than take a bag-in-a-box approach like soda machines, Monsieur uses fresh ingredients and standard bottles of alcohol that you can buy straight from your liquor store.
Monsieur is available in a home version that’s starting to ship this summer for $3,999. However, larger commercial models are likely where this robotic mixologist will be most in demand. A recent pilot with Levy Restaurants at Atlanta’s Philips Arena proved to be a huge success, and Givens says that Monsieur may soon be found at the Georgia Dome and World Congress Center, among other venues.
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