--- description: Testing the creative capabilities of computers title: IBM’s Supercomputer Watson Is Now a Chef With His Own Food Truck image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Newsfeed](/tag/time-section-newsfeed/) ## Newsfeed Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # IBM's Supercomputer Watson Is Now a Chef With His Own Food Truck  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 5, 2014 4:31 PM CUT  by [Olivia B. Waxman](/author/olivia-b-waxman/)  ## Olivia B. Waxman Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer Mar 5, 2014 4:31 PM CUT First, _Jeopardy!_ champions Ken Jennings and Ben Rutter [got served ](http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2049187%5F2049195%5F2049266,00.html "undefined")by Watson, the IBM supercomputer. Now, Watson is serving up dishes from a food truck as part of a new partnership with the Institute of Culinary Education in New York, NPR [reports](http://www.npr.org/blogs/thesalt/2014/03/03/285326611/our-supercomputer-overlord-is-now-running-a-food-truck?utm%5Fmedium=facebook&utm%5Fsource=npr&utm%5Fcampaign=nprnews&utm%5Fcontent=03042014 "undefined"). The supercomputer made its debut as a chef at a Las Vegas tech conference last week, and so far has produced gourmet, fusion fare like a Swiss-Thai asparagus quiche, an Austrian chocolate burrito, and a pork belly moussaka. Named after IBM founder Thomas J. Watson, the supercomputer comes up with creative meals based on a series of algorithms, [according to](http://www.research.ibm.com/software/IBMResearch/multimedia/Cognitive-Cooking-Fact-Sheet.pdf "undefined") the company’s website: --- > “” --- (**MORE**: [Watson’s path to profits is anything but elementary](http://business.time.com/2014/01/22/for-ibm-watsons-path-to-profits-is-anything-but-elementary/ "undefined")) IBM hopes Watson will become a lucrative revenue stream, TIME [recently reported](http://business.time.com/2014/01/22/for-ibm-watsons-path-to-profits-is-anything-but-elementary/ "undefined"), after the company’s sales fell for seven straight quarters and its stock price dropped — arguably due to changes within the technology industry and the larger shift from PCs and printers toward software and services. “Cloud computing” is now a formidable competitor, and IBM executives have “projected” that Watson, which operates in the cloud, will generate $1 billion in revenue by 2018, the [_Wall Street Journal_](http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303754404579308981809586194 "undefined")reports. However, three years after its _Jeopardy!_ debut, the supercomputer has only produced $100 million, [according to](http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303754404579308981809586194 "undefined") the newspaper. So at the beginning of 2014, “IBM announced that it will invest more than $1 billion into the Watson Group, including $100 million for venture investments to support start-ups and businesses that are building a new class of applications powered by Watson,” TIME [reported](http://business.time.com/2014/01/22/for-ibm-watsons-path-to-profits-is-anything-but-elementary/ "undefined"). The food truck will be at [SXSW](http://www.ibm.com/smarterplanet/us/en/cognitivecooking/truck.html "undefined"), the music and tech festival in Austin, Texas, from March 7 to 11. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/12912/ibms-supercomputer-watson-is-now-a-chef-with-his-own-food-truck/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/12912/ibms-supercomputer-watson-is-now-a-chef-with-his-own-food-truck/"},"headline":"IBM's Supercomputer Watson Is Now a Chef With His Own Food Truck","datePublished":"2014-03-05T16:31:29.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:07:30.099Z","description":"Testing the creative capabilities of computers","url":"https://time.com/12912/ibms-supercomputer-watson-is-now-a-chef-with-his-own-food-truck/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Innovation","Technology","Business topic","IBM","SXSW"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Olivia B. Waxman","jobTitle":"Staff Writer","url":"https://time.com/author/olivia-b-waxman/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/12912/ibms-supercomputer-watson-is-now-a-chef-with-his-own-food-truck/","name":"IBM's Supercomputer Watson Is Now a Chef With His Own Food Truck"}}]}] ```