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Robot Baristas as Strikebreakers
Companies are turning to automation as a tool to fight back against industrial action. In coffee, that role could well be played by robot baristas—in fact, it sort of already has.
The Many Reasons for the Latest Coffee Price Spike
It's the Coffee News Roundup: Week Ending October 24th
In the Age of Coffee Automation, What Happens to Baristas?
Coffee companies are going all in on automation. We’re told that it improves efficiency, cuts costs, and yields a better product. But what does it mean for the baristas whose labour these automations displace?
The King of Sweden’s Coffee Experiment
For paid subscribers: Today, Sweden is famous for its love of coffee. But historically that hasn’t always been the case, and one particular ruler’s attempts to prove coffee’s harmful health impacts may have been the world’s first randomised controlled trial.
Mergers, Acquisitions, and the Future of the Coffee Industry
Acquisitions and consolidation have always been part of coffee. Does the latest wave point to an industry in decline—or one ripe for renewal?
Lease Your Coffee With Maxwell Apartment. Or Something.
Coffee News Roundup: Week Ending October 3rd
Coffee Discourse is Becoming Increasingly Sensationalised
For paid subscribers: What happens when the melodramatic language of social media and political discourse begins to impact how we discuss the coffee industry.
The Hyperreality of Specialty Coffee
Well-funded startups mimic the aesthetics and language of specialty coffee. Giant multinationals cosplay community. Companies chase trends created by social media. It all points towards coffee's growing hyperreality.