The University of Arkansas announced that its student innovation team has partnered with Nestlé, a leading food and beverage company, to pilot a trademarked DiGiorno hot pizza kiosk outside Fulbright Dining Hall, the first for this brand on a college campus.
A group of students from the McMillon Innovation Studio will provide data analytics for the company as it operates the kiosk for a three-month pilot project.
The kiosk, adjacent to the cafeteria and available 24/7 to those with keycard building access, offers two styles of pizza – pepperoni and cheese – in 10-inch, thin-crust pies. The pizzas are three servings per pizza, cook in seven minutes and are delivered in a takeout box via a delivery chute. A pizza cutter is provided as well. The kiosk houses a commercial-grade oven and frozen, pre-made pizzas.
During the pilot, the student innovation team will be learning how to tailor the machine to students' needs.
Launched in 2016, the studio serves as an innovation hub to students across the U of A campus and works to develop future leaders, entrepreneurs and innovators by cultivating their creative mindset and connecting them to opportunities to make real-world impact.
