Richtech Robotics and SoundHound AI to Debut Live, Voice-Enabled Robotic Beverage Experience at Joint Showcase During 2026 National Restaurant Association Show in Chicago
Rhea-AI Summary
Richtech Robotics (Nasdaq: RR) announced a proposed strategic partnership with SoundHound AI (Nasdaq: SOUN) via a non-binding letter of intent to integrate SoundHound’s agentic voice AI into Richtech robotic systems.
The companies will debut a live, voice-enabled beverage service using Richtech’s Scorpion robot at the 2026 National Restaurant Association Show, May 16–19 in Chicago (booth #6857). Richtech will also demo humanoid ADAM making noodles at booth #3885. The parties are exploring co-marketing, bundled solutions, and potential subscription RaaS offerings.
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News Market Reaction – RR
In the May 6 session, RR gained 14.11%, reflecting a significant positive market reaction. Argus tracked a peak move of +8.4% during that session. Our momentum scanner triggered 31 alerts that day, indicating elevated trading interest and price volatility.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
Key Figures
Previous AI Reports
| Date | Event | Sentiment | 24h Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 30 | AI sales agreement | Positive | +0.5% | Chinese joint venture secured a $4M AI robotics sales agreement in Asia. |
| Jun 27 | AI R&D partnership | Positive | -5.8% | Strategic cooperation to advance AI-powered service robotics and R&D center. |
| Jun 26 | AI event exposure | Positive | +8.4% | ADAM robot featured at a high-profile U.S. Space Force-related event. |
| Jun 17 | AI usage milestone | Positive | -6.4% | ADAM surpassed 16,000 drinks served at flagship Las Vegas location. |
| May 16 | AI product upgrade | Positive | +17.8% | ADAM espresso upgrade with NVIDIA-powered AI vision demoed at NRA Show. |
24h Move is the share-price change in the day after each event; other market factors may also have contributed.
AI-themed announcements for RR have often been positive but produced mixed price reactions, with both strong rallies and sharp declines following similar AI updates.
Over the past year, Richtech has issued multiple AI-focused updates, including a $4 million Asian sales agreement, design collaboration in Beijing, high-profile ADAM deployments, and espresso and beverage innovations showcased at the 2025 National Restaurant Association Show. Price reactions to these AI milestones ranged from declines of more than 6% to gains above 17%. Today’s proposed AI voice partnership with SoundHound fits this pattern of using AI to enhance ADAM, Scorpion and service-robot capabilities in hospitality settings.
Key Terms
agentic ai technical
voice ai technical
robotics-as-a-service (raas) financial
AI-generated analysis. How Rhea-AI works. Not financial advice.
LAS VEGAS, May 06, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Richtech Robotics Inc. (Nasdaq: RR) (“Richtech Robotics”), a Nevada-based provider of AI-driven robotic solutions, today announces a prospective partnership with SoundHound AI, Inc. (Nasdaq: SOUN) (“SoundHound”), a global leader in voice and agentic AI. The parties have entered into a non-binding letter of intent regarding a proposed strategic partnership involving the integration of SoundHound’s advanced agentic voice AI capabilities into Richtech Robotics’ robotic systems, with the goal of enabling a more natural, real-time human-robot interaction within hospitality and service environments. The initial phase of the proposed partnership kicks off with a demonstration of an interactive beverage service featuring Richtech’s Scorpion robot powered with SoundHound’s voice AI system.
The demonstration will be held during the 2026 National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show taking place May 16–19, 2026 in Chicago at booth # 6857. The activation will showcase a fully integrated, end-to-end voice ordering and robotic fulfillment system designed for real-world restaurant and hospitality environments. Richtech Robotics will also maintain a separate booth at the show featuring its humanoid robot ADAM, which will be making noodles in a live demonstration. This activation will be located at Richtech Robotics’ booth #3885.
“We believe this proposed partnership marks the end of the era of task-oriented robots, ushering in the age of robots that actually engage,” said Richtech Robotics’ CEO Wayne Huang. “By embedding SoundHound’s 'ears and brain' into our platforms, we believe we’re making automation feel humanized. This transcends the idea of a mere upgrade, with the goal of creating a seamless, scalable service experience that feels natural to every customer.”
The companies are also pursuing broader commercial opportunities, including co-marketing, bundled solutions, and potential subscription-based Robotics-as-a-Service (RaaS) offerings.
“The future of hospitality is where high-tech meets high-touch,” said SoundHound Chief Product Officer and Co-founder, James Hom “Pairing our conversational intelligence with Richtech Robotics’ hardware allows us to close the loop between a spoken order and physical fulfillment. We’re eager to show the industry how agentic voice AI can turn a routine transaction into a truly dynamic customer experience.”
About Richtech Robotics
Richtech Robotics develops advanced robotic solutions and the data infrastructure that makes its robots more intelligent. Guided by three strategic pillars — Industrial, Commercial, and Data Services — Richtech Robotics aims to deliver dependable automation, consistent service performance, and continuous AI-driven improvement at scale. From factory floors to hospitality venues, our robots work alongside people to enhance efficiency, precision, and quality. Learn more at www.RichtechRobotics.com, and connect with us on X, LinkedIn and YouTube.
About SoundHound AI
SoundHound AI is a voice and agentic AI company that enables businesses to deliver natural, end-to-end conversational experiences across digital and physical channels, including phones, kiosks, chat, smart devices, drive-thrus, TVs, in-vehicle, and more. Its agentic platform, OASYS, is a self-learning, orchestrated AI system where organizations can build and deploy conversational AI agents to handle transactions, tasks, and workflows on behalf of customers and employees. Built on proprietary technology backed by 400+ patents and years of AI research, SoundHound serves leading brands across industries including automotive, financial services, healthcare, retail, telecommunications, and more. It powers millions of products and processes billions of interactions annually for enterprise customers worldwide. Learn more at: http://www.soundhound.com/.
Forward Looking Statements
Certain statements in this press release are forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements may be identified by the use of forward-looking words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “forecast,” “estimate,” “expect,” and “intend,” among others. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties.
These forward-looking statements are based on Richtech Robotics’ current expectations and actual results could differ materially. There are a number of factors that could cause actual events to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, risks related to the parties’ ability to negotiate and execute a definitive agreement, risks related to the ability of the parties to deliver the anticipated benefits of the proposed partnership to clients, and risks related to Richtech Robotics’ ability to realize the benefits of the proposed collaboration described herein. Investors should read the risk factors set forth in Richtech Robotics’ Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) on January 20, 2026, and periodic reports filed with the SEC on or after the date thereof. All of Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by all such risk factors and other cautionary statements. The information set forth herein speaks only as of the date thereof. New risks and uncertainties arise over time, and it is not possible for Richtech Robotics to predict those events or how they may affect Richtech Robotics. If a change to the events and circumstances reflected in Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements occurs, Richtech Robotics’ business, financial condition and operating results may vary materially from those expressed in Richtech Robotics’ forward-looking statements.
Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and Richtech Robotics assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Contacts:
Investors:
CORE IR
investors@richtechrobotics.com
Media:
Kelsey Romero
press@richtechrobotics.com
