News: Robot Barista Company Briggo Acquired by Coca-Cola Subsidiary

By Paul Thompson, Assistant Managing Editor, AustinInno

October 28, 2020, 03:04pm CDT

A subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company has acquired Austin-based startup Briggo Inc., maker of robot coffee kiosks.

Briggo announced in an Oct. 26 tweet that it will be rebranding as Costa Coffee BaristaBot. Briggo's Coffee Haus robot baristas have been stationed at notable locales such as Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and the Austin Convention Center, as well as inside large technology offices.

Costa Coffee is a British company with nearly 4,000 retail locations throughout the world, according to Coca-Cola's website. The Atlanta-based beverage titan completed a $4.9 billion acquisition of Costa Coffee in January 2019.

Erin Russ, a brand and business communications manager at Coca-Cola, confirmed Oct. 28 that Briggo was purchased by Costa Coffee earlier this year. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

"The investment in Briggo’s technology and expertise, which includes Briggo Coffee Hauses in several key customer locations, has been an exciting addition to Costa Coffee," Russ said in an email.

The acquisition of Briggo seems to be part of a strategy by Coca-Cola to increase its share of the coffee market.

Coca-Cola Chairman and CEO James Quincey said in an Oct. 22 earnings call that the beverage behemoth intends to become a "global multi-platform coffee company under the Costa brand."

All Briggo employees, including its executive leaders, joined the Costa Coffee team as part of the acquisition, Russ said. She added that there are currently five "active Briggo Coffee Haus units in market — all of which have been rebranded to Costa Coffee BaristaBots." Russ declined to confirm any hiring plans at either Briggo or Costa Coffee, and said Coca-Cola has "no news to share regarding Briggo's Austin office."

Charles Studor founded Briggo in 2008 and Kevin Nater joined as CEO in 2009.

The Briggo mobile application has also been replaced by the Costa Coffee app.

"This is an exciting transition and we’re committed to making it seamless for existing Briggo customers," Russ said.

Briggo raised a total of $19 million, according to Crunchbase. Filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission show the startup most recently raised a $1.5 million round in August 2019.

The company also in August 2019 announced an exclusive deal with SSP America — a division of British multinational company SSP Group plc — to bring its Coffee Haus robots into dozens of airports across the United States and Canada over the subsequent two years.

Russ did not provide an update on what will come of Briggo's expansion plans.

"We are still working to integrate the Briggo team and technology into Costa Coffee, and will have more to share regarding future plans at a later date," she said.