Zest launches AI concierge that books restaurant tables over text

Restaurant discovery app Zest has launched an AI-powered concierge that lives in users' text messages. It can combine a group's tastes, put restaurant options to a vote and book the table. Zest links to users' credit cards through Plaid to track where they actually eat, using only food and drink transactions. The startup raised $1.8 million in pre-seed funding.