Vending

COVID-19 quashes automated c-store Bodega

June 16, 2020

Stockwell AI, a company launched in 2017 as Bodega that raised at least $45 million for its app controlled vending machines, has fallen victim to COVID-19, according to a Techcrunch report.

Found by ex-Google employees Ashwath Rajan and Paul McDonald, Bodega raised a lot of angst over its name, which many found culturally insensitive, before changing the name to Stockwell AI.

McDonald told Techcrunch that the current landscape has made it necessary to terminate operations on July 1.

A thousand Stockwell machines were placed mostly in office and apartment buildings.

The company raised at least $45 million from First Round, Forerunner, NEa, DCM Ventures, GV, Homebrew and others.

For an update on how the coronavirus pandemic has affected convenience services, click here.