Can you really design a better vending machine?

The Campbell Soup Company thinks so. And they’ve unveiled a next-generation machine at their headquarters in Camden, New Jersey.

“Snackbot” features an LCD screen – and another very cool selling point: everything in it is free. But before you get anything dispensed, you have to answer a quiz in the category of your choosing, which could range from pop culture to Campbell's soup trivia.

"You select your category, and then you’re simply asked three questions about the category you selected,” says Chris Reif, Senior Vice President at Allen and Gerritsen, the firm that designed Snackbot. “There’s a time limit, so there’s no queue… You answer the questions, and if you get two out of three right, it says 'Congratulations.' You get a snack vended for you.”

But Reif says that the machine’s awesomeness goes well beyond free chips. Sometimes Campbell’s employees receive free Google Chromecasts or free GoPros. (Which makes me a little sad about the vending machine upstairs that houses my peanut butter sandwich crackers.)

Reif says that giving things away actually pays off. A third of the employees at Campbell's headquarters have used the vending machine, and the buzz around it helps connect people who otherwise might not interact.

"Especially with companies that are Campbell’s size, it’s very easy to get siloed and not know your fellow man or woman,” Reif notes.

He even believes that there’s a place for these vending machines outside corporate settings.

Of course, everything wouldn’t be free, but when someone got an unexpected gift, it could have a huge ripple effect. “Yes, it’s exciting for that one consumer, but what’s more exciting is capturing the reaction on film or video and putting that video out on the Internet, where now millions of people can see it.”

Goodwill towards a benevolent brand could skyrocket – and if some free candy or chips or cameras are given out in the process, it may turn out to be a win-win.