Keurig has just announced it’s partnering with Anheuser-Bush InBev to create the “in-home booze maker” of American consumers’ dreams.
Neither company is offering substantive details just yet, but the effort will require at least 50 employees in a still-unnamed R&D venture tasked with inventing an appliance that can make push-button “beer, spirits, cocktails, and mixers.”
The joint venture employees will come from the current AB InBev and Keurig teams and will be located in facilities in Massachusetts and Vermont.
They’re “still researching” how to make this device, as CNN notes, so it’s unclear what it’ll look like or, frankly, even do. But for a hint, it might make sense for Keurig to build on the foundation of Kold, the soda-making kontraption the company spent six years developing before discontinuing less than a year after it came out.
Still, it may be wisest to withhold judgment until the device — whatever form it ultimately takes — actually debuts.
“We’re thrilled to be moving forward with this joint venture and look forward to working closely with the Keurig Green Mountain team to explore the possibilities of what we can achieve together,” said Nathaniel Davis, CEO of the new venture. “We can’t wait to get started.”
“We are excited to partner with AB InBev to develop a new system for the adult beverage category. We look forward to combining our capabilities and technologies to deliver innovation for consumers,” said Bob Gamgort, Keurig Green Mountain CEO.
Anheuser-Busch InBev is a publicly traded company (Euronext: ABI) based in Leuven, Belgium, with secondary listings on the Mexico (MEXBOL: ANB) and South Africa (JSE: ANH) stock exchanges and with American Depositary Receipts on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: BUD).
