Like many different industries, the brewing business is embracing generative synthetic intelligence. Beer-drinking customers might also be reaping a few of AI’s rewards.
England’s St. Austell Brewery proudly proclaimed earlier this yr that the recipe for its new IPA, Hand Brewed by Robots, was created by AI — one yr after Beck’s stated its Autonomous was one of many first beers completely created by AI. Diageo, the guardian firm of Guinness, has used AI for packaging design and different duties, and Heineken says it makes use of AI to question knowledge, together with greater than “8,000 recordsdata of client data, interviews and experiences, for real-time insights and faster time to market.”
King Charles III pulled a pint in 2001 when he was the Prince of Wales at England’s St. Austell Brewery, which not too long ago used an AI recipe to create a brand new IPA. (Picture by Tim Graham Picture Library through Getty Photos)
Tim Graham Picture Library through Getty Photos
“We have now embraced AI throughout our operations in areas resembling income administration, industrial combine optimization, gross sales execution and R&D,” says Jurgen Nijkamp of Heineken’s international analysis and improvement division.
AI can “supercharge the applied sciences which are already delivering a constructive influence within the alcohol and brewing business,” says Thor Olof Philogène, CEO and co-founder of Stravito, the corporate liable for the generative AI chatbot utilized by Heineken.
AI can reply to such questions, Philogène says, as, “How do European millennials really feel about non-alcoholic beers?”, “What are client limitations/motivations for purchasing cider?” or “What are some tendencies in sustainable packaging in 2024?”
The style of a beer is “the important thing consider client appreciation,” says Lalo Luna, Heineken’s international strategic insights lead, however “AI has the potential to boost the general expertise by providing personalised options.”
AI can “present on-demand personalization, advocate particular beers for explicit moments and counsel meals pairings,” he says, “making it simpler to decide on the best beer for the best event.”
Guests in Amsterdam, Netherlands, flock day by day to the Heineken Brewery, which is utilizing generative synthetic intelligence to help its beer making. (Picture by Schöning/ullstein bild through Getty Photos)
ullstein bild through Getty Photos
At Heineken, AI “has been instrumental in deepening our understanding of customers and prospects,” Luna says. By analyzing huge quantities of information, AI helps “tailor insights and methods extra rapidly and with better accuracy.”
AI allows Heienken to “anticipate evolving client preferences and supply a extra personalised, partaking beer expertise,” he says.
Beck’s, which is a part of brewing large AB InBev, says it requested AI for concepts to have a good time the brewery’s one hundred and fiftieth anniversary. “We requested it for a recipe and out of tens of millions of potential mixtures, it gave us an ideal mix of yeast, malts, water and hops, and we bought brewing,” Beck’s web site says. “Autonomous is without doubt one of the first AI creations to really crossover from code, to display and into the true world, the place folks can really feel it, odor it and style it.”
ChatGPT was requested by this journalist how AI can profit beer-drinking customers. Its response:
“AI can considerably improve the beer-drinking expertise for customers in a number of methods:
“1. Customized Suggestions. AI can analyze particular person preferences based mostly on previous purchases, taste profiles and scores to counsel beers {that a} client is more likely to take pleasure in.
“2. Taste Pairing Ideas. AI can advocate meals pairings based mostly on the precise beer traits, serving to customers improve their tasting expertise.
“3. Digital Sommelier. Via chatbots or apps, AI can act as a digital beer professional, answering questions on completely different beer kinds, breweries and brewing processes.
“4. Augmented Actuality (AR) Experiences. Customers can use AI-powered AR apps to scan beer labels and entry detailed details about the beer, together with taste notes, brewing strategies and meals pairings.
“5. Social Options. AI can join beer fanatics with comparable tastes, facilitating discussions and proposals via social platforms or apps.
“6. Occasion Ideas. AI might help customers discover native beer occasions, tastings or festivals based mostly on their pursuits and preferences.
“7. Brewing Schooling. AI-driven platforms can provide personalised studying paths about beer kinds, brewing methods and tasting notes for these trying to deepen their information.”