Sweetgreen Sells Robotic Kitchen Arm for $186M in Strategic Pivot

LOS ANGELES, CA – December 29, 2025 – Sweetgreen, the popular fast-casual chain known for its healthy salads and bowls, has completed a landmark deal, selling its automation division, Spyce, to the food-tech firm Wonder Group. The transaction, valued at approximately $186.4 million, marks a significant strategic shift for the company, allowing it to reap the financial rewards of its technological investment while refocusing on its core restaurant business.

The sale provides Sweetgreen with $100 million in cash and an additional $86.4 million in Series C Preferred Stock in Wonder. This move effectively turns a technology development unit into a major capital gain and a strategic investment in a fellow food industry innovator. Spyce is the business unit responsible for creating the 'Infinite Kitchen,' the robotic assembly line that has become a key feature in a growing number of Sweetgreen locations.

While the sale transfers ownership of the technology, Sweetgreen will remain a primary user. Through a long-term supply and services agreement, the company will continue deploying and utilizing the Infinite Kitchen system, ensuring the automated technology remains a cornerstone of its operational strategy and guest experience. This arrangement allows Sweetgreen to benefit from the efficiency of automation without bearing the full burden of its research, development, and manufacturing.

A Profitable Tech Venture

Sweetgreen's journey with Spyce began in 2021 with an acquisition valued at approximately $70 million. At the time, the purchase of the Boston-based robotic kitchen startup, which itself was born out of an MIT engineering project, was seen as a bold move for a restaurant chain to vertically integrate advanced automation. The goal was to solve for speed, order accuracy, and labor efficiency in its high-volume kitchens.

In the years since, Sweetgreen has successfully transformed Spyce’s initial concept into a scalable, real-world solution. The Infinite Kitchen has been rolled out to more than 20 of its restaurants nationwide, proving its value in streamlining the process of assembling complex, customized orders. The system uses a conveyor belt to move bowls along a line where a series of automated dispensers drop in fresh ingredients, from greens and grains to toppings and dressings, all precisely portioned.

The sale to Wonder for $186.4 million represents a remarkable return on its initial investment. In just a few years, Sweetgreen more than doubled the value of the technology, demonstrating its ability to not only identify but also cultivate and scale a valuable tech asset. The deal validates the Infinite Kitchen's potential and solidifies its status as a leading-edge solution in restaurant automation.

The structure of the deal is particularly noteworthy. The significant cash infusion provides Sweetgreen with substantial capital to pursue its primary objectives, which the company states include reinvesting in key priorities, growth, and operational efficiency. Simultaneously, by taking a considerable equity stake in Wonder, Sweetgreen aligns itself with a company deeply embedded in the food technology and delivery space, retaining a vested interest in the future success and innovation of the very technology it helped scale.

A Strategic Shift to Core Operations

The decision to sell Spyce, while retaining access to its technology, signals a deliberate strategic pivot. Rather than operating as both a restaurant brand and a hardware technology developer, Sweetgreen is sharpening its focus on what has historically made it successful: its brand, its chef-crafted menu, and its mission to connect people to real food.

“This transaction reflects the strength of the Infinite Kitchen and the incredible work of the team behind it,” said Jonathan Neman, Co-Founder and CEO of Sweetgreen, in the company’s official announcement. “It allows us to stay focused on our long-term growth while continuing to benefit from a technology that has become a key part of our restaurant operations.”

This move effectively outsources the complex and capital-intensive work of hardware innovation to a dedicated partner. Wonder Group, known for its technology-forward approach to food production and delivery, is well-positioned to take the Infinite Kitchen platform to its next stage of development. For Wonder, acquiring this proven technology provides a powerful tool to enhance its own operational capabilities and potentially offer it to a wider market.

For Sweetgreen, this de-risks its business model. The company can now concentrate its resources on expanding its footprint of over 280 locations, innovating its seasonal menu, and strengthening its farm-to-table supply chain—all core components of its brand identity. The long-term supply agreement ensures that it will not lose its competitive edge in operational speed and consistency that the Infinite Kitchen provides.

The Evolving Landscape of Food and Automation

This deal is a powerful indicator of broader trends shaping the fast-casual and wider restaurant industry. Faced with persistent labor challenges, rising operating costs, and ever-increasing consumer demand for speed and convenience, automation is no longer a futuristic concept but a present-day strategic imperative.

However, the Sweetgreen-Wonder transaction suggests a new model for how restaurant brands can integrate this technology. Instead of bearing the immense cost and distraction of in-house hardware development, restaurant chains may increasingly look to partner with or license technology from specialized firms. This symbiotic relationship allows each party to excel in its area of expertise: the restaurant focuses on food, brand, and customer experience, while the tech company focuses on engineering, innovation, and manufacturing at scale.

By selling Spyce to Wonder, Sweetgreen has essentially established a blueprint for this model. It has monetized its successful R&D efforts, secured a long-term technology partner, and freed up capital and internal resources to double down on its primary mission. The move positions Sweetgreen as a more agile, focused restaurant operator that is powered by best-in-class technology, rather than being burdened by the complexities of producing it. As the industry continues to grapple with the role of robotics and AI, this strategic divestment may be seen as a forward-thinking maneuver that prioritizes sustainable growth and brand integrity above all else.