New ATM Dispenses Piping-Hot Pizzas

Late night pizza runs too often are accompanied by a stop at an ATM to grab the necessary funds. At Cincinnati's Xavier University, however, the two things have been combined beautifully.

A new pizza ATM — two words that should bring unequivocal joy to Americans everywhere — will debut at Xavier in September. The university partnered with Paline, a French company, to bring the technology to the United States. Paline operates about 300 machines throughout Europe and has been doing so for the past 13 years.

The ATM will be stocked with 70 pizzas at a time, handmade by dining hall staff who were trained by French chefs. The pizzas will cost between $9 and $10, but the ATM will offer discounts if it's overstocked late in the day. Xavier expects to sell 300 pizzas a day through the ATM.

In its deal with Paline, Xavier secured the exclusive rights to certifying new pizza ATM operators in North America. So, should anyone — be it Domino's Pizza or another university — want to install a pizza ATM, they'll have to come to Xavier for training and certification.