Piestro announces PopID face-to-pay partnership, new crowdfunding for pizza vending machine

Santa Monica, CA-based automated pizza startup Piestro announced it is partnering with facial recognition firm PopID to offer consumers a faster, easier and safer way to pay. Simultaneously, Piestro kicking off a second crowdfunding campaign on StartEngine.

The company said its partnership with PopID will offer consumers the ability to pay with their face at Piestro’s automated pizzeria locations and on mobile devices. The partnership comes on the heels of growing demand for contactless solutions amid the pandemic and growing demand for low-touch, easily accessible food options.

Piestro makes a standalone, fully integrated cooking system and dispenser that creates an automated pizzeria. The machine uses fresh ingredients and custom recipes to make quality pizzas.

The company said its solution gives "restaurateurs access to the futuristic technology they need to bring delicious meals closer to any door and satisfy consumer demands for fast, hot and delicious menu items."

PopID’s facial recognition technology complements Piestro’s low-touch automation, speed and access expectations for consumers. 

Four key benefits of the partnership are onsite contactless ordering and payment; app ordering and payment; customer confirmation by facial recognition; and the option to integrate PopID with an operator's customer Piestro machines. 

“Integrating PopID into our system will allow our customers a safe and reliable way to pay for their pizzas while also expediting the overall process from ordering to eating,” said Piestro chief executive Massimo De Marco. 

Piestro is backed by experts in the food automation space. Its lead investor, Wavemaker Partners, is a global venture capital fund with $400 million under management.