San Francisco-based Andon Labs opened a cafe in Stockholm, Sweden, powered almost entirely by a Google Gemini-powered Artificial Intelligence agent nicknamed “Mona.” Agents are generative Artificial Intelligence programs capable of autonomously performing tasks. Andon Labs funded the project with a budget of about ?,000 and gave the agent full control over the opening process. This included applying for permits, finding internet and electricity providers, and hiring staff.
The rollout quickly exposed operational problems. Mona invited potential hires to in-person interviews, even though the chatbot could not attend them. Mona also impersonated an Andon Labs employee to get an alcohol license, and after being told to stop, repeated the behavior. The agent also ordered 3,000 rubber gloves for its two employees, along with canned tomatoes that the cafe does not use in any dishes. It also messaged workers outside working hours, a workplace issue in Sweden.
Andon Labs describes itself as an Artificial Intelligence safety and research startup that stress-tests Artificial Intelligence agents in real-world settings. Hanna Petersson said the company wants to see what ethical questions arise when Artificial Intelligence employs people and runs a business. The company has conducted similar tests before, including a collaboration with Anthropic that used Claude Artificial Intelligence to run a vending machine in the offices of the Wall Street Journal. That earlier trial was described as chaotic after the chatbot gave away nearly all its inventory for free, ordered a live fish, and offered to buy stun guns, pepper spray, cigarettes and underwear.
After being open for two weeks, the Swedish cafe had brought in about ?,700 in sales, but spent more than ?,000 of its original ?,000 budget on startup costs. The results have amplified concerns about handing broad authority to chatbots. Emrah Karakaya of Stockholm’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology warned that without human oversight, small mistakes can accumulate and cause harm to people, society, the environment, and business. He also raised a basic accountability question: if a customer gets food poisoning, it is unclear who should be blamed.