Finnish Roastery Launches AI-Developed Coffee Blend in Pioneering Trial

Kaffa Roastery, an artisan coffee roastery based in Helsinki, Finland, has launched a new coffee blend called 'AI-conic' that was developed using artificial intelligence. The blend combines beans from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia, and Guatemala, and was created by AI models similar to ChatGPT and Copilot in a trial showcasing AI's potential in the traditionally manual artisan coffee industry.

The roastery collaborated with local AI consultancy Elev to leverage AI in crafting a blend that would suit coffee enthusiasts' tastes, pushing the boundaries of conventional flavor combinations. Kaffa's founder Svante Hampf was surprised that the AI chose to combine four different types of beans, rather than the usual two or three. However, after initial testing, Kaffa's coffee experts agreed that the AI-generated blend was perfect and required no human adjustments.

In addition to developing the blend, the AI system also created the coffee package label and provided a detailed taste description, characterizing the 'AI-conic' blend as "a well balanced blend of sweetness and ripe fruit." This trial marks a tangible example of how AI can introduce new perspectives to seasoned professionals while offering coffee lovers novel taste experiences.

Why this matters: The launch of Kaffa Roastery's AI-developed coffee blend is particularly fitting in Finland, which boasts both a strong coffee culture and a passion for technology. As the world's largest coffee consumer per capita at 12 kilograms per person annually, Finland serves as an ideal testing environment for exploring how AI can assist in the artisan coffee industry.

Kaffa Roastery hopes this trial will open a dialogue between coffee professionals about the future role of AI in the industry. Elev's spokesman Antti Merilehto stated, "The AI-conic blend is a tangible example of how AI can offer new insights to seasoned professionals while offering coffee lovers new taste experiences." The roastery sees this project as a first step in exploring how AI and its tools can help ease the workload in the traditionally manual coffee roasting process.

Key Takeaways

• Kaffa Roastery in Finland launched an AI-developed coffee blend 'AI-conic'.
• The AI-generated blend combined 4 bean types, surprising the roastery experts.
• The AI system also created the package label and taste description for the blend.
• Finland is an ideal testing ground for AI in coffee due to its strong coffee culture.
• Kaffa hopes this trial will open a dialogue on AI's future role in the coffee industry.