Chefee Shark Tank Update – Shark Tank Season 15
Founder Assaf Pashut brought Chefee, an automated kitchen system, to Shark Tank. The ambitious pitch featured a live cooking demo and ended in a deal with Kevin O’Leary.
Founder Assaf Pashut entered Shark Tank Season 15 Episode 17, hoping to cook up a deal for Chefee. He calls Chefee the world’s first embedded robotic kitchen. Before building Chefee, he ran a fast-casual restaurant chain called 5 Flying Falafel in the Bay Area.
Pashut became famous for flinging falafel into his customers’ mouths. He kept his mobile food truck running, but after it was wrecked in an accident, he embarked on the journey of creating Chefee. It expanded to five locations. But when the pandemic hit, he was forced to close every storefront.
That pivotal moment led to Chefee. Pashut needed a way to cook his grandmother’s recipes without spending much time in the kitchen. So, in late 2020, he started designing a robotic kitchen assistant that could prep, cook, and clean up. He even slept in his office under the 3D printers to get the prototype off the ground.
By the time he entered the Tank, Chefee was fully functional and patent-pending. Given that the company was pre-seed, Pashut likely wanted the Sharks’ cash to get the product into production.
But with a sky-high valuation and a pre-revenue product, would the Sharks bite?
Check Other Shark Tank Season 15 Episodes.
About Chefee
| Category | Details |
| Business Name | Chefee |
| Founder | Assaf Pashut |
| Industry | Robotics Technology |
| Product Type | Automated Kitchen System |
| Funding (Pre-Shark Tank) | $500,000 |
| Deal Status | Deal secured with Kevin |
| Investment Asked | $500,000 for 4% equity |
| Deal Outcome | $500,000 for 15% equity |
Chefee is a smart, voice-controlled kitchen system that plans meals, orders groceries, and cooks them all by itself. It’s not science fiction anymore.
Chefee Shark Tank Pitch
Assaf, the founder of Chefee, stepped into the Shark Tank seeking $500,000 for 4% equity. In front of the Sharks were three dishes Chefee had prepared: Spanish paella, spicy ratatouille, and tofu tikka masala. The Sharks liked the food. Assaf explained that users could customize recipes in the app.
The Sharks wanted to see it work, so Assaf ordered a meal with the app. Chefee sprang to life, rising from out of the counter. First, it took the lid off the cooker.
Chefee consists of 2 parts: upper and lower. The upper part, which fits into a standard kitchen cabinet, stores and dispenses ingredients. As he explained this, the Chefee dispensed and weighed the ingredients.
The left side of the upper portion is refrigerated. To supply Chefee, users need to integrate with Amazon Fresh. Once the Chefee finishes dispensing ingredients, it pours them into the cooker. They aren’t reinventing the wheel; they’re applying robotics to cookers. Chefee can be installed in any modern kitchen in the world.
Pricing Details
Chefee’s base model starts at around $9,500, while the premium version, with expanded ingredient capacity for more recipe options, can cost up to $50,000. The more you spend, the more Chefee can cook.
Still, this is a product aimed at high-end kitchens. And while Chefee was pre-revenue at the time of filming, it had already started attracting serious interest. Assaf shared that he had a $500,000 signed letter of intent from a luxury kitchen remodeler in Palm Springs. That’s a strong signal that there’s demand, especially at the high end of the market.
Assaf hasn’t launched full-scale manufacturing yet, but he’s been busy building buzz. He’s leaned into organic marketing and social media to spread the word and has demoed Chefee to builders, designers, and major kitchen appliance brands.
Sub-Zero/Wolf and their top executive loved what they saw. Down the road, Assaf is open to licensing partnerships, but he’s also focused on building Chefee as a standalone brand.
Mark Cuban asked, “if this thing works so well, why haven’t you started shipping yet?”
The founder answered that Chefee needed funding to scale. Assaf asked for $500,000 to move the company into production. He’s already raised $450,000 from other investors and put $90,000 of his own money into the business.
Each base unit costs around $1,500 in materials and $1,000 in labor to manufacture, so there’s room for a healthy margin if he can get production off the ground.
Read more details about Chefee Robotics on the Shark Tank Blog.
What Makes Chefee Unique?
Chefee is a fully automated, app-controlled robotic kitchen system. It helps in cooking meals from over 5,000 recipes, all on its own. The automated system stores ingredients, weighs and dispenses them. It can even place grocery orders through Amazon Fresh or Instacart. With refrigerated and dry storage built in, it is like having a personal chef in your kitchen 24/7.
Did Chefee Get a Deal on Shark Tank?
Barbara was the first to bow out. She liked the concept, but she was not convinced that Assaf could pull it off. Robert followed, saying the price point just didn’t make sense when there were cheaper meal-prep alternatives out there.
Lori also stepped away, concerned about how Chefee would adapt to the market in the long term.
Mark said it wasn’t a robotics company; it was an integration company. Assaf said they were a robotics company. They had patents pending for the entire system, the custom parts, and the embedded form factor. He spent 8000 hours on this.
Assaf learned mechanical engineering and 3D printing. He slept under the 3D printers in the office for weeks to get this done. They may not have been producing the motors, but they were integrating the robotics systems.
Mark shouted, “That’s an integrator!” He said there was nothing wrong with that, but he had to say what it was. Mark was not satisfied with the responses, and he was out too.
That leaves Mr. Wonderful. Kevin wanted to know who would maintain it if it stopped working. Assaf responded that anyone could maintain it with their instructional videos; they just needed plumbing experience.
Kevin liked the luxury appeal and offered $500,000 for 15%. Assaf countered with 8%. Kevin wasn’t biting. Assaf tried again at 12%, but Kevin stood firm.
In the end, Assaf accepted the deal with Kevin of $500,000 for 15% equity.
Chefee Shark Tank Update: What Happened After Shark Tank?
The Shark Tank Blog constantly provides updates and follow-ups about entrepreneurs who have appeared on the Shark Tank TV show.
As of June 2024, when the first re-run of this episode aired, there was no hard evidence that the deal with Kevin had closed. This was only 3 months after the original air date. Kevin was prominently referenced on the Chefee website, however.
In June 2024, the company was accepting “reservations” for December 2024 delivery. “Early bird” orders got $1000 in free groceries and $1000 off the price. There was a refundable $250 reservation fee. The fully refrigerated, premium version costs more than $50,000.
The Shark Tank Blog will follow up on Chefee & Assaf Pashut as more details become available.
Where Can You Buy It?
Contact the company to get yourself an automated kitchen! You can find them on their official website. Keep checking their social media, like Facebook and Instagram, for more updates.
Quick Summary
- Assaf Pashut appeared on Shark Tank to pitch his business, Chefee, seeking $500,000 for 4% equity.
- Chefee is an automated kitchen system that smartly takes up your kitchen responsibilities.
- Kevin O’Leary offered $500,000 for 15%, and after counteroffers, Assaf accepted the original deal.
- Assaf secured a deal with Kevin, the only Shark willing to take a chance on the high-tech kitchen of the future.
Want to know about other businesses that appeared on Shark Tank Season 15, Episode 17? Check out the business updates below!
