SHANGHAI, June 05, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — At a coffee-making competition during Shanghai’s 5.5 Shopping Festival and Coffee Culture Festival, a 7th‑generation robot barista outperformed a human barista in speed and weight accuracy.
In the Hongqiao Robot Coffee Competition, COFE+, a fully intelligent robot barista developed by Shanghai Hi‑Dolphin, faced off against a barista who has judged TOC (Top of Coffee) competitions. Under referee supervision, both prepared three Americanos, while judges tracked total time, per‑cup time, and weight deviation.
The COFE+ robot barista completed three cups in 2 minutes and 43 seconds, averaging 54 seconds per cup. Weight deviation across the three cups was ±0.8 grams, or about 0.3% of the target weight. The human competitor finished in 3 minutes and 35 seconds, averaging 72 seconds per cup, with a weight deviation of ±2.1 grams, or approximately 1%. Notably, the robot recorded no measurable errors or deviations beyond the allowed tolerance.
According to event judges, the robot worked nearly 1.5 times faster than the human barista and delivered roughly three times greater precision. One judge commented, “The robot demonstrated amazing consistency. It challenges the assumption that handcrafted coffee is inherently superior.”
COFE+ can prepare over 300 beverage types across eight categories, including fresh‑ground coffee, milk tea, matcha, hot chocolate, and plant‑based drinks. It stores signature recipes from 197 countries and allows more than 5,000 customization options, such as strength, sweetness, temperature, and robot barista latte art.
This robot holds more than 120 international patents and has secured food safety and equipment certifications from the FDA, CE, UKCA, and authorities in Japan, South Korea, and other markets. These certifications enable faster market entry in nearly 70 countries.
The operating costs for the COFE+ robotic kiosk can be more than 90% lower than those of a traditional café, mainly due to reduced wages, rent, and renovation expenses. One employee can remotely monitor up to 10 units, with daily restocking taking about 15 minutes per machine. The projected payback period is 4‑8 months based on average sales volumes in high‑traffic locations, according to company data.
“Our goal is to reduce financial risk for café operators and make high‑quality coffee more accessible to consumers,” said Dr. Han Feizi, founder of Hi‑Dolphin Robotics.
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