You know those world-changing breakthroughs that make you glad that technology exists? Well, CHiP — also known as SideChef’s new “smart cookie oven,” currently raising funds on Kickstarter — may just be one. For our tastebuds’ sake, at least!
Promising to let us create fresh-baked cookies with no mess, it’s a smart tabletop kitchen device that will “intelligently bake” everyone’s favorite chocolate chip-filled snacks — courtesy of a Wi-Fi connection to your mobile device, and a range of smart sensors.
“Different flavors go through different chemical reactions as they bake, so we’ve programmed [CHiP] to sense the cookie temperature throughout the baking process, ensuring each cookie is perfectly baked,” the company’s Kickstarter campaign notes.
The cutting-edge cookie oven promises to be more energy-efficient than traditional electric elements. It heats up instantly, and even allows users to delay baking time so that the cookies can be ready when you most want them.
“Building the world’s first smart device to bake fresh cookies under 10 minutes took quite a bit of engineering ingenuity,” SideChef CEO Kevin Yu told Digital Trends. “We also incorporated a scan and bake function, and no clean up, for the easiest batch of cookies to bake on the market. Beyond that, we really wanted to reinvent a common kitchen appliance to fit the modern consumer, who has less time to cook, high standards of quality around food, and often [eats] outside of just the kitchen and dining room.”
Much as you would with a Nespresso machine, to use SideChef’s smart cookie oven you’ll need to order the company’s proprietary pods, which contain all the ingredients you need. Then, simply choose a flavor — which range from sea salt chocolate chip to oatmeal raisin — and pop the corresponding gourmet cookie dough into the machine. Then wait for the connected mobile app to send a “ready” alert to your smartphone or tablet.
There’s even a smart messaging app built in for communicating with friends and family.
If you want to get your hands on a CHiP machine, you can pre-order one on Kickstarter, where a unit will cost you $99+. Shipping will take place roughly a year from now in October 2017.
