Bite Ninja Gets Closer to Making Restaurant Remote Staffing a Reality With $4 Mln in Seed Funding

Bite Ninja, a Memphis-based tech startup, has raised $4 million in seed funding to bring remote working to the restaurant industry.

The funding round was led by Owl Ventures with participation from AgFunder, Manta Ray, and TRAC Unicorn Fund. The capital will allow Bite Ninja to expand its team and accelerate the development of its remote restaurant hiring platform. Ross Darwin, Principal at Owl Ventures, referred to the firm’s participation by stating:

“As part of our latest commitment to support the nation’s workforce, Bite Ninja is a part of Owl Ventures’ continued commitment to the future of work and lifelong learning. We believe companies like Bite Ninja are the future of the gig economy, providing traditional industries with modern solutions to adapt to today’s workforce challenges.”

Bite Ninja was founded back in 2020 by Will Clem and Orin Wilson as a solution to the restaurant staffing crisis caused by the COVID19 pandemic. By allowing restaurants to hire highly trained remote waitstaff, or “ninjas”, to attend to its customers via menu boards in drive-thrus and counters, the startup seeks to improve customer satisfaction while also increasing flexibility for restaurant managers. Clem said in this regard:

“The sustaining workforce shortage, especially among the restaurant industry, has generated heightened momentum for Bite Ninja and we are rapidly deploying our Ninjas across the nation.”

With most industries transitioning toward remote work, job seekers have grown increasingly disinterested in working in the restaurant industry. According to Business Insider, 85% of small restaurants in the United States said they found it “very hard” to find staff back in September. When compared to the 50% that felt the same way back in July, the situation seems dire for the industry.

By allowing potential employees to work remotely, Bite Ninja expects to provide all parties involved with a better experience supported by technological innovation. The startup’s platform will also help business owners improve their operations by providing them with actionable insights to increase upsells, order accuracy, and customer satisfaction.