Changing Times: McDonald’s Voice Assistant will reshape the traditional ordering system

Artificial Intelligence is assisting humans in every sphere of life. It helps in the early diagnosis of colon cancer, it provides a customized experience during online shopping, it takes voice commands and displays the appropriate results. It has transformed every sector from picking an uber to dialling  an emergency number. AI can tackle everything with ease. 

 

The food industry in the US is struggling with labour shortages. Hit by the pandemic it is getting difficult for restaurants to serve their best meals on time. McDonald’s has launched McVoice, a voice assistant feature that will take orders and will deliver food packages to customers coming in for drive through. 

 

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McVoice is in the testing period and ten restaurants in Chicago are currently taking online and offline orders  through this voice assistant. The company plans to extend McVoice Assistant’s order capabilities to all the outlets in the USA but the expansion might take longer than expected.

 

The voice assistant is built by tech startup Apprente. Apprente was acquired by McDonald's, the  startup  specializes in building voice assistants.  McVoice Assistant is not entirely error free in its approach. Averagely out of five orders it needs human assistance in one. The technology is only in the nascent stage and is 85% accurate. A lot of fast food outlets and restaurants are using robots for delivery and food processing.

 

The assistant will also show the previous order list, and will recommend new burgers and beverages based on the previous order. 

 

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Taco Bell is using AI chatbots for simplified order placement experience. Wendy’s is also taking orders through a self ordering kiosk. CaliBurgers is using Flippy, a robot that flips burgers so that humans can focus on making scrumptious sandwiches and burger toppings. Dominos the leading fast food joint is using drones and robot for hassle free pizza deliveries.

 

As reported by Freethink McDonald’s CEO Mickey D's, Kempczinski said "Most of those are not ready for prime time, nor will they be ready for prime time over the next five years.”

 

Not only in the USA AI has transformed the food sector in many countries. The outlets are embracing this new technology as it is helping them to cut down on labour costs. Most outlets in the US are taking orders through smart tabs and applications.

 

Fast food joints  in the UK are also embracing the new technology. Robotazia is the UK's first sci-fi themed restaurant where robots deliver food, take orders and even discuss the menu with the human beings. Artificial intelligence is set to revolutionize the food industry.