CES 2026: This AI bartender called me old, but it makes one hell of a drink

I love a free drink. I also love the premise of asking an AI to invent a cocktail based on a vague flavor profile and a dream. For the truly rudderless among us, the kind of people who walk up to a bar and say "surprise me" with full confidence, the AI Barmen might be your new best friend.

The AI-powered bartender is being showcased at CES 2026, and at first glance, it appears to be yet another piece of liquor-filled kitchen technology. But the pitch is a little more ambitious than that. According to its founders, the AI Barmen is meant to behave like an actual bartender that sees you, talks to you, remembers you, and adjusts accordingly.

That starts before you even order a drink.

As demonstrated on the CES show floor, the "ritual" for getting served begins with the machine scanning your face and attempting to estimate your age. You don't hand over an ID at first. You just…stare into the camera. The system estimates your age within a broad range, and if it believes you're under 21, it automatically switches into a non-alcoholic mode, offering zero-proof cocktails and juices.

For the record, it guessed I was 30. I'm 27. Talking to other attendees, early-to-mid-30s seemed to be the most common range it landed on, which feels flattering until you remember this is a robot trying not to piss people off. It's a neat party trick, though.

Once you pass that check, you're prompted to either talk to the AI directly or select from a list of pre-made cocktails. The company says AI Barmen can theoretically generate thousands of drink combinations based on mood, taste preferences, and conversation, but for CES, the menu was limited to tequila- and whiskey-based drinks only.

This is where the concept is supposed to shine. AI Barmen is designed for "convo bartending," meaning you can tell it how you're feeling, what kind of night you're having, or what flavors you want, and it will craft a drink while explaining its choices in real-time. It also claims to recognize returning guests, remember preferences, and even slow things down if it thinks you're ordering too quickly, with a built-in sobriety check that will cut you off.

In theory, it's thoughtful. In practice, CES is very loud.

A recurring theme at tech events like this is that the environments are almost hostile to anything involving voice recognition, and AI Barmen was no exception. Not realizing there was no gin in the machine (rookie mistake), I asked for "a gin base that's sweet but not too sweet." Somewhere, my coworkers at the bar I work at are absolutely laughing at me — and that's why I'm just a barback.

The machine couldn’t hear me properly, got confused, reset the flow, and asked for age authentication again. Moments later, a staff member politely asked to see my ID because the system now thought I might be underage.

Honestly? Thank you. I'll take the compliment.

Despite the hiccups, the AI Barmen did make me a drink — a Peach Boom, a sweet peachy cocktail with Jack Daniels and grenadine. It was served quickly and tasted good, although a bit diluted for my liking. The company envisions it handling up to 180 drinks a night while also remembering guests across locations. I'm curious to know how the machine will function in environments where it will be loud.

But as someone who loves a free drink, vague instructions, and the chaos of a CES demo barely holding together, I have to admit: I was intrigued.

Even if the machine did briefly think I was an old fart.

Head to the Mashable CES 2026 hub for the latest news and live updates from the biggest show in tech, where Mashable journalists are reporting live.