Kloo didn’t set out to eliminate the ritual of making coffee; they set out to refine it. Equal parts culinary secret weapon and everyday indulgence, Kloo is a small-batch coffee concentrate that delivers bold, specialty-grade flavor to everything from your first morning cup to cocktails and desserts. It’s part chef’s tool, part personal luxury – crafted for those who love to cook, love to host, and love a good cup of coffee. Kloo’s frosted glass bottle adorned with an artful screen-printed design, looks more like a fine spirit than a morning essential. The logo – a maze-like looped ‘K’ – reflects the brand’s ethos: complexity distilled into simplicity. It’s a bottle that signals premium, not just in flavor, but in form. Founded by mother-daughter duo Claudia Snoh and Mariella Cho, Kloo was created from a shared obsession with the nuance of great coffee. Mariella, a certified Q Grader (the coffee world’s version of a sommelier), developed Kloo’s proprietary “super concentrate” brewing method to bring out the purest, most expressive flavor of each bean – then aged each batch for up to 21 days to deepen body and complexity. From sourcing to shipping, every detail is intentional. Kloo uses only specialty-grade beans (each scoring 85+ by Q Graders), roasted in-house and brewed in small batches. The concentrate is then cold-shipped and kept refrigerated to preserve every note. A taste of the single-origin varieties: Colombia (Venecia, Cundinamarca): Almond, maple syrup, blackberry Kenya (Karundu, Nyeri): Grapefruit, lemongrass, dark chocolate Ethiopia (Adado, Yirgacheffe): Peach, jasmine, wild berry Guatemala (Pasajquim, Atitlán): Toffee, burnt toast, dark chocolate Each profile is bold enough to stand on its own, yet balanced enough to complement whatever you’re making. Unlike many concentrates, Kloo’s strength and consistency make it a natural fit for chefs and bakers, especially in large batches where precision matters. Whether you’re stirring it into a sauce or folding it into a batter, Kloo delivers depth, not bitterness. It’s a shortcut that doesn’t feel like one. And while it’s a favorite among chefs, it also belongs in every home cook’s fridge. You’ll find yourself reaching for it more than you expect – whether for an impromptu dessert, a 4pm boost, or an elevated cocktail. For those who love to gather, Kloo is a quiet revolution. It makes the art of hosting feel seamless – adding flavor, elegance, and just a little flair to your moments of connection. One of the best-kept secrets of the seasoned host? Bookend your gathering with memorable moments. Start high, end high – and do it with something that’s bold, caffeinated, and effortlessly chic. Welcome your guests with a low-ABV drink, perfect for warm afternoons. Kloo Stout 1.5 oz Kloo coffee concentrate 12 oz chocolatey stout or lager Preparation: Add chilled Kloo to the bottom of a pint glass, then slowly pour in the beer and let it mix naturally. Smooth, rich, and just unexpected enough to be a conversation starter. Close the evening by serving guests an easy and elegant dessert that never disappoints. Kloo Affogato 1 scoop vanilla gelato 1 shot (about 1.5 oz) Kloo concentrate Preparation: Pour Kloo directly over the gelato just before serving. Dessert and coffee, all in one beautiful moment. Like most devout daily coffee drinkers, I’ve always been skeptical of concentrates – too often they’re bitter, flat, or forgettable. Kloo is different. It doesn’t replace the ritual of great coffee; it respects it, while making room for all the ways we actually live. Whether you’re brewing slowly, moving quickly, cooking for others, or just trying to get out the door, Kloo brings depth and intention – without asking you to compromise. For more information on Kloo, visit drinkkloo.com. Photography courtesy of Kloo.

A humanoid robotics startup co-founded by prominent artificial-intelligence futurist Ray Kurzweil said on Tuesday that venture capital firm Gauntlet Ventures will back its $100 million Series B funding round. The company, Beyond Imagination, will be valued at $500 million, and venture capital firm Gauntlet Ventures will be the round’s sole investor. Kurzweil is known for popularizing the term “the singularity,” when he predicted two decades ago that by 2045, artificial intelligence would surpass human intelligence and embark on a path of accelerating self-enhancement. These ideas, which once seemed like science fiction, are now viewed as mainstream by many technologists. Beyond Imagination is co-founded by scientist, entrepreneur and filmmaker Harry Kloor. The company has developed a humanoid robot—the Beyond Bot—and accompanying AI models that it intends to deploy in industrial settings such as factories, pharmaceutical plants and chip manufacturing facilities, said Gauntlet Ventures co-founder Oliver Carmack. The company has been testing its robots and is now looking for large enterprises into which they can be deployed, Carmack said, adding that he chose to back Beyond Imagination because of its potential to revolutionize U.S. manufacturing and address the projected global shortage of skilled labor. Major tech companies including Nvidia, Meta Platforms and Tesla, alongside various startups, are rushing to make humanoid robots, and are betting that recent advances in AI will also lead to breakthroughs in robots and automation. In October last year, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said that “a lot of progress” has been made with its humanoid robot, Optimus, which could perform many daily tasks. Progress on robots has been slow, however, as researchers have found that the language-related AI breakthroughs driving chatbot development have not necessarily helped with understanding of the physical world. Many companies are spending enormous sums to collect the real-world training data necessary to train models that can power robots. In addition to humanoid robots, Beyond Imagination is also developing Aura, which co-founder Kloor described as a universal operating system for intelligent manufacturing, allowing humans, robots and legacy machines to work together. Beyond Imagination has attracted an eclectic roster of advisers, including former Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs, motivational speaker Tony Robbins, and onetime Paramount Pictures chairman Jim Gianopulos. —Dawn Chmielewski and Anna Tong, Reuters