About DrinkDock
DrinkDock is designing age-verified vending machines for canned beer, seltzer and cocktails, so busy venues can sell simple drinks without making every order wait for a bartender. We’re based in Philadelphia and forming our first pilot here.
Why we started
We started DrinkDock after too many Friday nights stuck in a bar line for a drink that takes five seconds to open.
Most people have a limit on how long they’ll wait for a drink. Past it, some order something simpler, some come back later and some leave. The ones who leave are sales the bar never sees, and they leave on the nights that matter most.
How we build it
Bartenders keep the drinks that need them
The machine takes canned orders so bartenders can spend their time on cocktails and guests.
Every alcohol sale is checked
ID on every alcohol sale, two drinks per scan, and staff who can stop the machine at any time.
We’ll install and support pilot machines ourselves
The team you talk to is the team that installs and supports pilot machines, starting in Philadelphia.
You see what it sold
Manager shows what the machine sold, when, and what it declined, so you can judge it on your own numbers.
Where we are
DrinkDock started in 2026. Here’s what exists today.
The machine design
Specifications, placement requirements and design renders for three machines. See the machines.
Working software prototypes
The guest screen and DrinkDock Manager, which you can try on this site.
A pilot plan
A small group of Philadelphia bars and hotels, a PLCB advisory opinion for each, and first installs planned for 2027.
What we don’t have yet
A production machine or a customer installation. The pilot is how we get both.
Team
Jon Adams
Co-founder & CEO
Leads conversations with hotels and bars and plans the Philadelphia pilot. Spent six years at FGS Global, most recently as an Associate Director advising Fortune 500 companies on strategy and communications. Went to high school on the Main Line. MBA candidate at Wharton; BA, Tufts. LinkedIn
Erika Smith
Co-founder & COO
Leads operations planning for the pilot: placement, stocking plans, support during service hours and the PLCB request for each venue. Spent three years at McKinsey & Company as a Senior Business Analyst, and was a Factor Fellow in Primary Ventures’ first Factor Fellowship cohort. MBA candidate at Wharton; AB, Harvard.
Stacie Hartman
Co-founder
Formerly at McKinsey & Company. MBA candidate at Wharton.
Jason Traum
Co-founder & CTO
Leads the product and software: the guest screen and DrinkDock Manager you can try on this site. Spent four years at Morgan Stanley building research and internal AI tools. MBA candidate at Wharton; BS, Brown. LinkedIn
Get in touch
We’re in Philadelphia and happy to come to you.
Email drinkdockhq@gmail.com, or tell us about your venue and we’ll reply within two business days.