Babette Pepaj on Building BakeBot, Cooking With AI, and Staying Human
Recipes & Roadmaps is Blueberri’s founder spotlight series, featuring the visionaries redefining how food and tech intersect. In this interview, Babette Pepaj—creator of BakeSpace and BakeBot—shares the evolution behind her AI-powered kitchen assistant and the human creativity that still drives every recipe.
Founding Story & Background
What first sparked your interest in food, publishing, or food tech? Was there a moment that inspired the idea for BakeBot?
I started BakeSpace.com in 2006 because I couldn’t find a place online to connect with home cooks in real time.
Creating the first food-themed social network taught me something crucial: people don't just want recipes — they want conversation, camaraderie, and the confidence to adapt and create.
The inspirational spark for BakeBot came from seeing thousands of comments about our recipes on Pinterest. They were important questions — ones only the original recipe author could answer.
I couldn’t figure out why home cooks were leaving comments there instead of BakeSpace. Then I realized something: what if we could add AI to every recipe page so that anyone with a question could get an answer fast?
That’s when I discovered the true power of AI. It wasn’t just about modifying or creating new recipes — it was about understanding the context of the page and helping home cooks in real time.
We first built BakeBot on BakeSpace (bakespace.com/bakebot) to improve the user experience on our existing recipes and make our platform more powerful.
In 2024, BakeBot on BakeSpace won a Webby Honoree award for “Best Community.”
As we expanded, we realized we needed a standalone tool that reflected our full vision and voice capabilities.
So we launched BakeBot.ai.
Tell us a bit about your background. How did your past experiences shape the way you built BakeBot?
My 15-plus years working in television taught me that the best technology disappears into the experience. With reality TV, the goal is to capture authentic moments and real conversations as the camera goes unnoticed. That’s how I developed BakeBot. I wanted home cooks to feel so comfortable talking to it, they wouldn’t notice it was AI. First testing text chat on BakeSpace and then adding vision and voice technology on our standalone site BakeBot.ai.
Is there a story behind the name BakeBot? Or an early pitch or product moment that really stuck with you?
Initially, "BakeBot" seemed obvious - it connected to our BakeSpace roots and made the AI aspect clear. There is a growing trend of naming AI after people and I almost named it Babs. But then I thought, what does that even mean to a home cook? BakeBot just felt right and I didn’t want anyone else to have BakeBot.
- Babette started BakeSpace in 2006 to bring real-time connection to home cooks.
- BakeBot was born from the need to answer recipe questions in real time using AI.
- BakeBot personalizes user experience by adapting to confidence level, dietary needs, and context.
- Brands can use BakeBot to support shoppers with product education and recipe ideas—at the shelf.
- Babette believes AI should empower creativity, not replace it.
- She balances startup life with rescued pets, walks, and developing cookbooks inspired by TV/film.
Vision & Product
There are a lot of recipe apps out there. What did you feel was missing when you started BakeBot?
So much of the focus now is on “AI recipe generators” that simply wrap around other AI tools to create new recipes. But that's not how we cook. We don't create a new recipe every day. We work with what we have, we adapt family favorites, we make the same dishes over and over but need to modify them for different people or circumstances.
I wanted BakeBot to be different - I wanted our AI to think and respond like a seasoned cook - contextually, creatively, and several steps ahead. It isn't just about recipe generation - it's about overcoming every barrier that lies between inspiration and cooking.
Source: BakeBot.com
What’s the most significant milestone BakeBot has reached so far, and what did it take to get there?
I love when I hear, “BakeBot is so nice.” We spent over a year teaching it how we cook, what makes a great recipe and how to give home cooks confidence. Basically, everything I learned building BakeSpace - talking to members, getting to know what makes a great recipe and understanding what it takes to get dinner on the table. I tried to give it everything I learned.
What’s next on the roadmap?
Our agentic capabilities are expanding rapidly. BakeBot doesn't just wait for questions - it anticipates them.
I'm particularly excited about our new SmartSwap feature. You can upload any recipe, and BakeBot will spot the imported ingredients, suggest local ingredient swaps that save you money, along with how much you'll save and where you can buy the swapped ingredients. It does all the math and ingredient tracking for you. Just by swapping out $20 worth of ingredients in one grocery trip every week, you can save $1000 annually.
We're also expanding BakeBot’s voice and conversational capabilities, which can now coach you in any language, in real-time. Imagine getting step-by-step guidance for making perfect pasta from scratch, entirely via voice, in your native language. That's the future we're building.
What’s your take on balancing AI-powered convenience with preserving creativity?
BakeBot amplifies creativity by removing friction. Instead of thinking "I can't make that because I don't have X," you think "what can I create with what I have?" The AI handles substitutions, measurements, and timing – while you focus on the fun. How is that not creative cooking?
What do you hope people feel when they open BakeBot?
I want them to feel like they're never alone in the kitchen. Cooking can be lonely and frustrating - especially when you work on something all day and it just sucks. There's a moment of panic when you realize you're missing an ingredient, or when something isn't turning out right. I want BakeBot to transform those moments from "I can't do this" to "let's figure this out together."
“The wrong way would be AI that makes everyone feel the same—either dumbed down or overwhelmed.”
Creators & Partnerships
How do you envision collaborating with creators and publishers?
Food bloggers and creators have been a bit slow to embrace AI, despite how it's a natural fit for what they do.
BakeBot could translate their recipes into any language, convert measurements, and swap out ingredients based on dietary needs. It could also help them brainstorm new recipe ideas and instantly answer any comment or question they receive from their audience.
Going even further, BakeBot can create beverage pairings for their recipes, suggest seasonal variations, and help them adapt their signature dishes for different dietary restrictions.
We’re starting to work with other publishers to create branded BakeBots for them. It’s a powerful tool to help their readers get answers, find new recipes, and stay on their sites longer.
BakeBot can do that.
What content formats are most compatible with BakeBot? What makes someone a strong fit for BakeBot partnerships?
We're actually testing branded BakeBots right now — imagine going to a grocery store and interacting with a brand in real time.
You pick up an ingredient you've never used, and instead of just reading the package, you can ask how to use it and get related recipes before you even leave the store.
The brands that get it are the ones that realize this isn't about pushing their products — it's about genuinely helping people cook better.
When a branded BakeBot can help you choose the right pasta for your sauce or explain why their olive oil works better for finishing versus cooking, that's when the partnership creates real value for everyone.
For food bloggers or baking creators, what’s one opportunity they might be missing when it comes to future-proofing their recipe content?
I've watched this industry evolve for almost two decades — from early blogs to everyone chasing cookbook deals, then tweaking recipes to fit Google's algorithm, and now trying to optimize for AI search.
Food creators are constantly adapting to new platforms and trying to build communities.
What I think gets lost in all the platform-chasing is remembering that on the other end of the link is a real person who’s probably standing in their kitchen feeling a little overwhelmed.
The content creators who focus on making a human connection — who write like they're talking to a friend, who anticipate the moment when something goes wrong, who remember what it feels like to be intimidated by a new technique — are the ones who will thrive regardless of what technology comes next.
Founder Insight & Legacy
What’s something you learned the hard way while building BakeBot, but that ended up being a gift in the long run?
A lot of people said AI in food would never work. Nearly every article I read was pessimistic — “AI can't understand cooking,” or “it lacks intuition.”
But after personally seeing how BakeBot transformed my relationship with recipes, I realized the critics were thinking too small. They were imagining AI replacing cooks instead of empowering them.
That skepticism was actually a gift because it pushed us to prove that AI could enhance human creativity and intuition in the kitchen rather than replace it.
You’ve always been ahead of your time in food tech. What does “doing this right” mean to you now, especially as AI continues to impact the cooking experience?
Thank you for saying that.
I think doing it right means meeting people where they are. For someone who's intimidated in the kitchen, “doing it right” means being that encouraging friend who says “you’ve got this.”
For someone who's already confident, it means being a knowledgeable colleague who can suggest a technique they haven’t tried or help them adapt their favorite dish for a new dietary restriction.
The wrong way would be AI that makes everyone feel the same — either dumbed down or overwhelmed. AI should recognize your skill level, your confidence, your kitchen setup, and your goals so it can meet you there.
Someone shouldn’t have to pretend to be more or less experienced than they are to get help that actually works for them.
Life Outside of BakeBot
What keeps you grounded outside of work?
I love hanging out with our two rescued chihuahuas — Savannah and LB (short for Lucky Bastard) — who we got on their last day at the pound, and our cat Gracie, who my sister found in the trash. Going for walks with my husband and this little pack keeps me centered.
I'm fascinated by unique homes in LA, especially their kitchens. There's something inspiring about seeing how people design their cooking spaces, and I'll admit I spend way too much time looking at home listings just to study kitchen layouts. When I walk past a home and I can see their kitchen, I always wonder what kind of food they make.
I love making branded cookbooks for films and TV shows — there's something magical about helping fans relive their favorite characters and moments through food.
I can look at almost any film or TV show and figure out a culinary angle. Even when food isn't central to the plot, there are always these little moments — a character stress-eating cereal at 2 a.m., someone making their grandmother's soup when they're homesick, a couple bonding over takeout. These moments tell us so much about who the characters are, and I love figuring out how to translate that emotional connection into something viewers can actually make in their own kitchens.
It's like reverse-engineering storytelling through food — finding ways to bring people closer to the stories and characters they love by recreating those intimate culinary moments.
For a palate cleanser, I still develop TV show formats to keep my brain working at maximum creativity level. After 15 years as a TV producer, it's something I can't stop — it's in my DNA.
Rapid Fire
- I believe any problem can be solved with… tenacity. At the moment it’s the darkest, people simply give up and it’s usually just before something amazing is about to happen.
- When I need liquid courage… a scotch on the rocks or a perfect gin and tonic. When I first started going to bars, my mom told me if I only got a scotch on the rocks, I’ll never get drunk and I’ll only have to buy one drink a night. She was right!
- My guilty pleasure is… eating anything with marshmallows, those Trader Joe's lemon bars, Levain cookies, and my wedding cake that I can get by the slice anytime at Gelson’s bakery (which is the most romantic dessert my husband brings home).
- Superpower I wish I had… give everyone the confidence to cook fearlessly, to see ingredients as possibilities instead of limitations.
- The app I can’t live without… Notes app. It has every idea I've ever had. In fact, I just dreamt that I had idea for a show, wrote it down in my notes app and then woke up. Even in my dreams, I’m writing ideas down. I also love Audible.
- My favorite recipe to cook when I’m stressed is… one my grandmother made in Detroit - it's pasta with stewed tomatoes and lots of butter. It brings me back to my childhood and is incredibly comforting.
- If I weren’t building this company… working in TV. Who knows, maybe I would be running a show. I’ve always wanted to move the Cook Islands. But I see myself one day living in a small town, on a farm where my dogs can run free, and where I know all my neighbors. I’m that Midwest-friendly woman who smiles and waves at everyone. That’s what made me a great producer - both for tv and welcoming people to BakeSpace.
- Dream collaborators… I can only pick one? I have three types of cooks I'd like to cook with - John Belushi (we're both Albanian) or Chris Farley, and I think they'd make me laugh the whole time. I did meet Curtis Stone at one of our TECHmunch events - he was so warm and friendly. He would give me so much confidence cooking. And Keanu Reeves - something about his warmth and kindness, I’d love to know what he cooks.
- Quote I live by… "stay out of trouble" a lot, and "if not now, then when?"
Rewriting the Recipe for Innovation
BakeBot isn’t just about recipes, it’s about empowerment, resourcefulness, and reimagining what’s possible in the kitchen. Babette Pepaj’s work is a reminder that when technology meets storytelling, it becomes something more than just a tool—it becomes a companion.
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