McDonald's is planning to implement more AI technology in its 43,000 restaurants – but not all customers love it.
The fast food empire will add more AI tools to all its locations worldwide in the coming years.
Part of the new technology includes kitchen appliances that are connected to internet, AI Drive-Thrus and extra AI tools for managers.
The company strives for better customer experiences, together with employees who have treated with problems such as broken machines and inaccurate food assignments, according to McDonald's Chief Information Officer Brian Rice.
'To be honest, our restaurants can be very stressful. We have customers at the desk, we have customers at our Drive-Thru, couriers who come in for delivery, delivery to the sidewalk side, “Rice said in an interview via Wall Street Journal.
'That is a lot to deal with for our crew. Technology solutions will relieve the stress. '
Despite the goal of streamlining the business activities, the news of the addition of the AI ​​technology has made some old fans of the double arches upset.
Various angry users claimed that the changes would mean that the wages of employees will fall or “reduce the workforce”.
McDonald's is planning to add new AI technology to all 43,000 of his restaurants
“Goodbye employees, hope that the wage increase stored for lobbyde is stored,” wrote an X user.
“We must end the use of AI,” replied another X user.
Despite the return, McDonald's hopes that the technology will help reach its goal of 250 million loyal customers by 2027.
“McDonald's is building a digital ecosystem that enables us to create more personalized experiences and make contact with our customers during their McDonald's Journey like never before,” a spokesperson told DailyMail.com.
“We are constant testing, learning and evolving our technologies and partnerships to better serve our communities and to support our crew.”
McDonald's has set up his plans for global expansion by using Google Cloud to give employees the opportunity to process and analyze data in restaurants in 2023.
This process, known as Edge Computing, can be a faster and more affordable option than sending data to the cloud, according to Rice.
He added that Edge Computing will be used to predict when kitchen appliances will probably break down.
Some of his suppliers have already installed sensors with AI in kitchen appliances that send data to computer systems.
This data offers updated information about restaurant activities and AI will analyze data to recognize early signs of potential maintenance problems.
Some new technology includes kitchen appliances connected to internet, AI Drive-Thrus and extra AI tools for managers
Edge Computing will also be used to help managers to supervise restaurant activities, and the chain ultimately hopes to create a 'generative AI virtual manager'.
The fast food chain hopes that the virtual manager can perform administrative tasks, such as planning work shifts.
Several McDonald's restaurants in the US started using some Edge computer methods in 2024, and the chain is planning to add it to other locations later this year.
The Restaurant Conglet is also considering implementing computer vision, the type AI used for face recognition.
Rice explained that they would use technology in the store mounted cameras to determine whether restaurant orders are correct before they are given to customers.
“If we can tackle those problems proactively before they occur, it means smoother operations in the future,” Rice said.
Despite the process, McDonald's can be confronted with challenges in implementing all AI-driven technology, Sandep Unni, Retail Analyst at Market Research and IT consultancy Gartner, told The Wall Street Journal.
These problems can include the costs and difficulty to bring the same technology to franchisees and restaurants to the company.
Unni went further by saying that McDonald's is 'relatively aggressive' in investing in technology, and that in combination with collected data, the opportunities of the chain to improve the loyalty of the customer could increase.
In addition to activities in the store, McDonald's hopes that the AI ​​technology will help with promotions and offers through customer purchase history and weather data.
“A customer we know loves our sweet delicacies, can get an offer through the app for an Mcflurry on a warm summer day,” Rice said.
McDonald's has set up his plans for global expansion by using Google Cloud to give employees the opportunity to process and analyze data in restaurants in 2023
The function of a McDonald's functions could not stop talking, was the Drive Thrus.
The company started testing with speech-driven Drive-Thrus in 2019.
By 2021, McDonald's tested the machines in more than 100 restaurants after cooperation with International Business Machines (IBM).
Various errors with the Drive-Thrus became viral after Tiktok users had taken the incidents.
One video showed a woman trying to order a bottle of water and vanilla ice cream.
However, she had four packs of butter and four packs of ketchup incorrectly added to her order.
Another clip contained two customers who laughed at an AI chatbot with 2,000 chicken mcnuggets to their order, which cost more than $ 200.
The fast food chain continued with the termination of his partnership with IBM in 2024 and announced that all experimental Drive-Thrus 'at the latest on July 26' would be removed.
McDonald's tested speech-driven Drive-Thrus in 2019, but announced that they would all be removed by July 26
McDonald's is not the only fast food chain that has used AI technology in recent years.
Restaurants such as Wendy's, Taco Bell and KFC have implemented AI Drive-Thrus at some of its locations.
The AI ​​chatbots at Wendy's went viral last year after a tapping toker successfully placed an order during a video at a location in Florida.
The clip ignited an AI restaurant debate about whether the technology was a positive or negative restaurant function.
