Beijing Robot Serves 202 Coffees in 1 Hour, Sets New Record

Electrical Technology

Beijing’s Robot Coffee Shop Runs 24/7 & Serves 202 Cups in One Hour, Setting a new Guinness World Record

Beijing has opened a fully automated coffee shop where a robot can prepare and serve drinks around the clock without a traditional human barista. The 7Fresh Coffee outlet, a beverage brand operated by JD.com, opened on August 16, 2026, at the Galaxy SOHO complex in Beijing’s Chaoyang District.

The company describes it as its first 24-hour intelligent unmanned coffee shop. On its opening day, the automated system served 202 cups of coffee in 60 minutes during a Guinness World Records attempt. Reports from the South China Morning Post, JD.com and Chinese media said the performance was officially recognized as a new record for the most cups of coffee served by a robot barista in one hour.

The 202-cup result means the system averaged about 3.37 cups every minute, or roughly one completed cup every 17.8 seconds during the record-setting hour. That figure is faster than the shop’s normal advertised preparation time of under 30 seconds per drink.

According to SCMP, the automated production line can handle several orders at the same time, rather than making every drink sequentially. This allows the system to maintain a much higher overall throughput than the preparation time of an individual drink might suggest. Seoul Economic Daily claims the normal preparation time at around 20–30 seconds, while The Paper – Shanghai Daily have reported even shorter times for certain hot and cold beverages.

Customers do not need to speak with a barista. They place an order through a self-service touchscreen or the JD.com app, select their drink and customize certain characteristics. These include coffee strength and sweetness, with reports describing adjustment ranges from 1% to 100%.

The automated equipment then handles the production process. It can grind the beans, extract the coffee, mix ingredients, prepare the drink, handle the cup and move the finished beverage to an automated collection area. A display inside the store allows customers to watch the production process as their order moves through the system.

The cafe outlet without barista also offers other beverages, including tea, sparkling water and probiotic fruit drinks. JD.com says the system combines artificial intelligence with embodied-intelligence technologies to automate physical tasks inside the store.

The company is also exploring AI-assisted flavor development and personalized recommendations. According to JD, future systems could analyze customer preferences and consumption patterns to help develop new drinks. These planned features are separate from the core automated coffee-making system already operating at the Beijing location.

South China Morning Post reported that the store produced more than 1,900 drinks during its first 19 hours of operation, although that figure represents opening-day performance rather than a demonstrated 24-hour production average. JD also livestreamed the robotic operation during the launch, turning the store into a public demonstration of automated retail technology.

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