Five teams entered their robotic waiters into the contest. After a preliminary round to judge the safety of the robots, the robots served conference attendees at the opening reception of the Fourteenth National Conference on Artificial Intelligence. Robots from five teams acted as waiters, serving snacks to the AAAI conference attendees at the opening reception. The robots served a variety of food items, including sandwiches, pretzels, peanuts, and candy. The primary criterion for food selection was that no item could be messy, preventing potential damage to the robotic hardware.

The Navy Center for Applied Research in Artificial Intelligence (NCARAI) has been involved in both basic and applied research in artificial intelligence, cognitive science, autonomy, and human-centered computing since its inception in 1981. NCARAI, part of the Information Technology Division within the Naval Research Laboratory, is engaged in research and development efforts designed to address the application of artificial intelligence technology and techniques to critical Navy and national problems. The research program of the Center is directed toward understanding the design and operation of systems capable of improving performance based on experience; efficient and effective interaction with other systems and with humans; sensor-based control of autonomous activity; and the integration of varieties of reasoning as necessary to support complex decision-making. The emphasis at NCARAI is the linkage of theory and application in demonstration projects that use a full spectrum of artificial intelligence techniques. The NCARAI has active research groups in Adaptive Systems, Intelligent Systems, Interactive Systems, and Perceptual Systems.

The first Hors d'Oeuvres, Anyone? event at the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence Mobile Robot Competition was held in 1997. Five teams entered their robotic waiters into the contest. After a preliminary round to judge the safety of the robots, the robots served conference attendees at the opening reception of the Fourteenth National Conference on Artificial Intelligence.