Jay-Z is putting his money behind a new robot-operated pizza truck business with big plans to change the food industry.
He invested in Stellar Pizza, a restaurant on wheels that can churn out 420 pizzas a day and cook a single pie in less than five minutes thanks to its robot technology, according to a press release obtained by Fortune. The artist-turned-entrepreneur led the $16.5 million funding round through his venture capital firm Marcy Venture Partners (MVP).
The truck was designed to reduce the cost of labor and commercial rent while still serving a tasty product. The company’s debut comes as the food service industry continues to struggle to retain workers. The industry has had the highest consistent quit rate of 5.4% since July 2021 due to traditionally low wages and the surge in remote work, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Stellar Pizza co-founders Benson Tsai, Brian Langone and James Wahawisan are all former SpaceX engineers.
“What we’re trying to do is very hard; I needed to recruit the best and the brightest to develop a mobile pizza machine that is basically a spaceship on wheels,” Tsai says, per Fortune. “I can’t even count the number of pizzas.”
Stellar Pizza, which can also deliver pizzas right to your door, is set to open at the University of Southern California this fall.
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