ROLO Robotics, a Singapore-based food robotics company, has raised $3.45 million in an oversubscribed seed round led by BEENEXT.
ROLO said in a statement on last Friday that the round saw participation from Blueprint Ventures, TIS Japan, Seedstars, A2D Ventures, SUTD Ventures, Antler, and Lotus One Investment.
The round also saw continued support from strategic angels Valentin Schillo and Gilbert Rodrigues.
According to ROLO, deployments are planned across Singapore in partnership with food operators, universities, hospitals and transport hubs, followed by pilot sites in Australia (first quarter of 2026).
The company targets 20 to 30 autonomous micro-kitchens in Singapore by 2026, creating a distributed, connected network of always-on robotic micro-kitchens.
“At ROLO, we believe the future of food service is human-robot collaboration — food that’s affordable, customizable and always fresh,
“MAYA 3.0 brings industrial-grade precision into everyday kitchens. This funding allows us to accelerate deployments in Singapore and Australia while strengthening the connective tissue between robotics, AI and future humanoid collaboration,” said Ravi Nahappan, ROLO’s Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer.
ROLO develops autonomous kitchen systems that merge robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and food engineering to power the next generation of food service.
Its flagship micro-kitchen, MAYA, enables 24/7 unmanned operation across retail, campus, industrial and hospitality environments.
It is noted that across developed markets globally, mounting labor shortages, soaring wages, and tightening margins are the key challenges for any food operator today.
In Singapore, food and beverage (F&B) wages have risen 40 percent to 50 percent over five years while turnover exceeds 100 percent annually.
Rising rents, food costs and compliance costs further strain profitability, forcing many kitchens to reduce hours or close altogether.
Margins are shrinking, yet the demand for variety and optionality continue to soar.
Those who win, do so because they have found a way to maintain margins and profitability at scale.
ROLO’s Robotics micro-kitchen solutions offer unmanned cooking and service through robotics, automation and AI, removing dependency on human labor.
Each autonomous unit can operate 24/7 with minimal replenishment, cutting labor costs by up to 80 percent across the value chain while improving consistency, quality, food safety, availability and driving down costs for consumers.
The firm’s flagship solution – MAYA 3.0 – integrates robotic arms, multi-appliance coordination and proprietary ChefOS AI to cook, package and serve fresh meals in a compact footprint.
Unlike vending or reheated meal systems, MAYA visibly cooks food to order with full customization of flavors and add-ons.
It provides convenience with customization. The menu offering does not stop there with other cuisine workflows including Asian Noodles, Salad Bowls, Pasta and Wok dishes in the pipeline.
“ROLO isn’t just prototyping — it’s deploying real systems that solve real labor and cost challenges. The combination of reliable hardware and intelligent orchestration software gives ROLO a defensible edge,
“With commercial pilots already signed, Ravi and Tushar are building a category-defining company at the forefront of applied robotics in food service,” said Jeremy Soh, Vice President at BEENEXT.
Beyond its own units, ROLO is also partnering with ingredient producers, kitchen-equipment makers and contract caterers to develop automation-ready products and integrate its control software into next-generation appliances.
This ecosystem approach allows the entire supply chain — from central kitchens to facility operators — to scale efficiently and sustainably.
Singapore’s Eureka Robotics raises $10.5 in Series A funding round led by B Capital