--- title: "Chef Admits His Smash Hit Pizza Was Invented by ChatGPT" description: "A chef in Dubai used OpenAI's chatbot ChatGPT to come up with a pizza recipe — and as it turns out, it started selling like hotcakes." date: "2024-08-31" modified: "2024-08-31" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/chef-admits-pizza-chatgpt" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "OpenAI" tags: - "chatgpt" - "generative ai" - "OpenAI" - "pizza" - "the digest" --- # Chef Admits His Smash Hit Pizza Was Invented by ChatGPT ![A chef in Dubai used OpenAI's chatbot ChatGPT to come up with a pizza recipe — and as it turns out, it started selling like hotcakes.]() *\Image: Dodo Pizza\* ## Everything Pizza A chef in Dubai used OpenAI's chatbot ChatGPT to come up with a pizza recipe — and as it turns out, it started selling like hotcakes. Spartak Arutyunyan, head of menu development for the international pizza chain Dodo Pizza, [told the *BBC*]() that the resulting recipe "was actually a huge hit, and it's still on the menu." In a bid to reflect Dubai's culinary traditions, ChatGPT went all out, suggesting a wild mix of ingredients. The recipe includes "Arab shawarma chicken, Indian grilled paneer cheese, Middle Eastern Za'atar herbs, and tahini sauce," according to the report. In simple terms, the chatbot decided to create a cross-cultural hodge podge of flavors to be thrown together on a pizza rather than anything particular original. Regardless, it seems to have struck a nerve. "As a chef, I wouldn't mix these ingredients ever on a pizza, but still, the mix of flavors was surprisingly good," Arutyunyan told the *BBC*. ![]() *Image Credit: Dodo Pizza* ## The Menu's Rejects Arutyunyan revealed that other ChatGPT recipes didn't make the cut, including a pizza topped with strawberries and pasta, or a pie featuring blueberries and breakfast cereal. We've already come across several lazy attempts to cash in on the AI hype in the culinary world. Last year, for instance, a dubious "bespoke smoothie shop" called BetterBlends in San Francisco [closed down]() after its hyper-personalized smoothie recipe business failed to catch on. A taco shop in Dallas also dabbled with generative AI — with equally mixed results. Velvet Taco culinary director Venecia Willis told the *BBC* that ChatGPT spat out some "funky combinations." "I think AI is a great tool to use when you're in a bit of a creative slump, to get the brain going again — ‘that combination might actually work, let's try it,'" she said. "The AI can suggest something maybe I wouldn't have thought of." Other experts were far more skeptical of the use of AI chatbots in the kitchen. "If you can get ChatGPT to spit out something that looks like a recipe, then it's because there are recipes on the internet," outspoken AI critic and University of Washington linguistics professor Emily Bender told the *BBC*. **More on ChatGPT:** *[Did AI Already Peak and Now It’s Getting Dumber?]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()