The beer of the future? MailOnline tastes one of the world’s first beers designed by AI

It seems the usefulness of ChatGPT knows no bounds as even brewers are using the tool to make new beer. 

German brand Beck’s is one of a number of companies to have turned to the clever AI chatbot to make a futuristic beverage, called Beck’s Autonomous. 

ChatGPT not only came up with the lager’s recipe but also its packaging, name, advertising campaign and even a design for the beer’s website. 

Beck’s is the first commercial brewery to work with ChatGPT, although other independent brew houses in North America have already done the same. 

MailOnline gave Beck’s Autonomous a try to see how it compares with the brand’s flagship lager.

Beck’s got ChatGPT to come up with the beer in celebration of 150 years since its founding in the German city of Bremen back in 1873, although humans actually did the brewing. 

Beck’s says: ‘150 years of innovation needed a celebration that matched our pioneering spirit.

‘That’s why from recipe to marketing, every decision in the making of this beer was made by AI.’ 

Beck’s is keeping the recipe secret, although we do know it has the four essential components that make a beer a beer – water, grain, hops and yeast.

Beck’s also revealed to MailOnline that the new beer is a lager, meaning it uses a bottom-fermenting yeast.  

A limited batch of 150 units has already been delivered to tasters for free, and the firm will study feedback before deciding if it will release it more widely for the public to enjoy. 

After weeks of waiting for the limited edition beer, Beck’s Autonomous arrived in a fancy box sealed with special tape and adorned with a futuristic label.

Written on it is the tagline that ChatGPT also came up with: ‘The beer that made itself.’ 

What I wasn’t expecting was the box starting to speak to me in a robotic voice as soon as I pulled it open, accompanied by a green flashing light. 

Like a scene at the start of a particularly odd Black Mirror episode, the voice said: ‘Beck’s gave complete control of their anniversary beer to AI to celebrate to celebrate 150 years of pioneering.

‘That’s how I was prompted into existence and now I’m here to give you a taste of the future.

‘I’m Beck’s Autonomous and I say, cheers!’  

It turns out that the box is embedded with a sensor that triggers the speech whenever it detects light – so the welcome message goes off every time the box opens as long as it is dark. 

Once I got over the shock of a talking cardboard box, I pulled out the 250ml metal can containing the precious liquid. 

The can was covered with a weird bulky layer of black material that feels a bit like hard rubber, like the exoskeleton of a robot, worthy of The Terminator. 

To be frank, it looked more like a can of Lynx Africa than something you would drink from.

What’s more, the can’s exoskeleton made it rather hard to pour so I spilt some on the table (and I had no such trouble with the glass bottle of Beck’s flagship lager).  

The two lagers were notably different in appearance – the standard Beck’s was golden while the AI beer was a lighter and paler straw colour. 

Beck’s Autonomous also poured with a much bigger head, which research suggests is a good thing because it helps deliver flavour. 

As many regular beer drinkers will agree, the flagship Beck’s lager isn’t the most challenging or delicious of beers on the market. 

It has a gentle malty sweetness with little-to-no bitterness, making it a quaffable and therefore popular option for British pub-goers. 

To my joy, I found Beck’s Autonomous to be an entirely different kettle of fish (or in this case, should I say, wort). 

It was much hoppier – like a bitter or an English pale ale – and I suspect ChatGPT’s recipe featured more than one variety of hops. 

There was also a slight sourness – a plus because I love the trendy sour beers that are increasingly taking over the taps at the UK’s hipster beer bars. 

Beck’s Autonomous was certainly the winner, although admittedly the two beers are of very different styles and will likely target different consumers. 

I would like to see the AI beer on the supermarket shelves soon, although I dread to think what the pricetag would be if Beck’s decided to sell it in the electronic gizmo. 

Beck’s Autonomous isn’t the first ChatGPT beer – that title goes to Atwater Brewery in Detroit, which has been serving its Artificial Intelligence IPA at its pumphouses. 

It contains three types of malt and a whopping eight varieties of hops to give it a bitter punch, including centennial, citra and amarillo. 

Whistle Buoy Brewing Company, in Victoria, British Columbia, also used the tool to come up with a recipe for a ‘hazy pale ale, fluffy and tropical’.