The buzz in tech and news circles has been constant for decades, and increasing substantially in recent years, to the point that the watchwords are all essentially household words today. From ChatGPT, to A.I., to "Siri" and "Alexa," drones, self-driving cars and so much more, what can never be denied is that, as long predicted, the robots are indeed coming. In fact, ready or not, and like them or not, they're actually already here and are simply not going anywhere.

​

In the city of Chicago, which made power moves years ago to establish itself as one of the nation's world-class tech hubs, one company, RuTech Robotic Innovations, has wholly embraced robots as a key foundation for what America's workplaces of the future look like. Founded by noted entrepreneur, restaurateur, venture capitalist and investor Stephanie Gong, RuTech Robotic Innovations was established on the city's south side in 2021, an innovative outgrowth of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Ms. Gong, who first came to the United States in 1992, has since amassed 30 years of restaurant and catering experience, absorbing every aspect of the business herself from the ground-up. Today, she is the proud owner of multiple Chicago-based restaurants, and her capabilities and knowledge base additionally extend into real estate, having achieved success in property management and investing in technology sector companies.

Ms. Gong's sensitivity to the hardships of her employees, and concern about supporting them amid the stresses they were contending with, gave birth to the idea of deploying robots to streamline their day-to-day tasks. Robot assistance significantly eased their workloads, enabling them to better focus on customers' experiences. In just three years at the helm of RuTech, Ms. Gong leads and has grown the largest robotic distribution company in America. Seeing first-hand how useful robots are, a part of her goal is to put an end to the many misconceptions that some people have about artificial, mechanized workers.

"Robots are not here to take our jobs, but instead to work side-by-side with us," Ms. Gong states, "helping us to make our jobs more efficient and handling the more strenuous tasks so we can better focus on our customers. When the pandemic started, people were afraid to be around each other and had to social distance," she adds. "Even those who were brave enough to come into the restaurants, came, but still wanted to have very minimal interaction with our staffs. When I first saw the robots and how they work, I recalled how tough the job is and how the robots can help our workers, especially during busy periods; robots can deliver multiple trays of food at once and do the heavy lifting so that the workers won't have to strain themselves as much."

​

RuTech's specialty is in providing businesses large and small with cutting-edge technology to optimize delivery processes, and improve customer experiences. The RuTech product line includes autonomous disinfecting and cleaning robots, and delivery and reception robots, which today can be found in all types of industries ranging from restaurants, offices, hospitals, convention centers, casinos and malls, to government offices, warehouses, daycare centers, senior centers, bowling alleys and shopping centers. Continues CEO Gong: "Before the pandemic, not many people used robots because they thought these were jobs that only human beings could do. But, post-pandemic, we found out that robots were quite commonly used across Europe and Asia. Robots working side-by-side with humans is already the norm in many countries, and I feel it will soon become the norm in the United States as well. I personally test every brand and model of robot before bringing them onto the RuTech roster, and I only add those that I feel are ready for America. Right now, especially because of the pandemic, robots have become a necessity. And, when there is a necessity, there will be demand."

 

RuTech Robotic Innovations is the leading distributor of robots in the United States. Founded and headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, the company's mission is to offer the best quality robots and the highest standard of customer service as our hallmark. RuTech also not only sells robots, but also offers financial services options to those who'd like to lease before purchase. Now in its third year of business, and although restaurants are the pioneers, the company is keenly focused on growing and expanding its footprint across a wide range of industry sectors, including offices, hospitals, airports, convention centers, casinos, malls, government offices, warehouses, daycare centers, senior centers, bowling alleys, shopping centers and more.