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The all-in-one smart cooking machine – the TOKIT Omni Cook C2 – has become the first in South Africa, and the African continent, to feature an AI-supported cooking assistant.
The TOKIT Omni Cook employs the subscription free CookNJoy platform where users can find more than 5000 recipes as well as its new AI-supported cooking assistant which becomes the user’s own personal sous chef. The CookNJoy platform can be accessed through a touchscreen interface on the machine, a phone app and the TOKIT website. The recipe collection is constantly updated with new dishes from different regions of the world, including South African favourites. Users can also add and save their own recipes to their own personal library via the CookNJoy app.
The new AI-supported cooking assistant uses artificial intelligence to help with meal planning, recipe creation and cooking by understanding user preferences, available ingredients and dietary needs and providing step-by-step guidance, making cooking more efficient, personalised and less wasteful.
The company behind the TOKIT Omni Cook C2 is the Shanghai-based Chunmi Technology Co., Ltd, a company that has been in existence since 2013 and specialises in smart kitchen appliances. Chunmi, in turn, is part of the ecological chain of multinational Chinese conglomerate the Xiaomi Corporation, best known for being the world’s No 2 mobile phone producer.
The Johannesburg based Swiss Diversitas Group is the official Southern African distributor of the TOKIT Omni Cook C2, which was introduced successfully into the country last year, with other appliances to be added to the portfolio in coming months.
Says founder and director Nicolas Thoenen: “The rise of AI in the kitchen isn’t just a technology trend or fad – it’s going to change cooking as we know it while making it faster and more reliable. We are delighted that we are the first in South Africa to make AI available on all TOKIT machines that have been sold to date and all new units as well as being the front runner in this country when it comes to AI cooking.”
Thoenen believes that TOKIT is only scratching the surface of possible AI capabilities and sees further updates for the units happening on a continuous basis.
“More and more people will be using these smart cooking devices for benefits which include cooking precision and consistency, convenience and time saving, the reduction of food waste and personalised cooking experiences as well as meal planning all while providing data-driven cooking insights,” he says.
“The more you use your TOKIT, the more the AI cooking assistant will understand your unique tastes by utilising machine learning (ML) and user feedback to improve accuracy and personalisation over time. These systems move beyond static recipe apps, instead adapting to individual tastes, dietary needs, and, in some cases, physical cooking habits.”
Currently, the TOKIT Omni Cook CookNJoy AI platform supports communication in the following three categories:
- Ingredients and cooking knowledge (including nutrition, pairing, handling and dietary nutrition)
- Recipe recommendations and generation (including recipe cooking methods)
- TOKIT Omni Cook appliance-related inquiries (including product introduction, function usage, parameter settings and troubleshooting)
Two other new features which have been added to the TOKIT are real-time weighing support during recipe cooking as well as a slice & shred mode which is designed to be used with the machine’s newly available slicing and shredding accessories, saving time and effort while ensuring cleaner, more uniform food preparation.
Adds Thoenen: “For those who have no clue how to cook, this tech revolution is going to get them into the kitchen as it guides new cooks through complex recipes and answers immediate questions. Professional chefs are already using and will continue to adopt AI cooking assistants; not as replacements, but as tools to enhance creativity, efficiency and consistency.”