Topline
Drive-thru service at Wendy’s will soon use artificial intelligence, the fast food chain announced Tuesday, joining similar moves at restaurants like McDonald’s, Panera and Popeyes, as more industries attempt to automate their processes using the popular technology.
A vehicle pulls into the drive-thru lane at a Wendy’s fast food restaurant in Alhambra, California.
Key Facts
The AI chatbot was developed by Google and will use natural language in an attempt to mirror the experience a customer would have in the drive-thru lane if they were speaking with an employee, the company said Tuesday.
Customers will be able to talk to the chatbot and the chatbot will be able to answer frequently asked questions, Wendy’s said.
The new technology will launch in June in the Columbus, Ohio, area.
Last week, the parent company of Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. also announced it would begin using AI at the chains’ drive-thru lanes.
Key Background
Wendy’s joins a list of fast food chains attempting to streamline the drive-thru ordering process. In 2021, McDonald’s and IBM partnered to automate its customers’ drive-thru experience using an AI-enabled voice system. Last year, both Popeyes and Panera deployed the voice AI ordering platform, Tori, to customers. Meanwhile, Checkers & Rally’s began using a conversational AI system called Holly at some restaurants.
Contra
The use of chatbots has already faced some obstacles in the fast food industry due to the technology’s imperfect response. A BTIG survey obtained by Restaurant Dive in 2022 found that at 24 Illinois McDonald’s restaurants, the accuracy rate of the drive-thru technology was in the “low 80% range.” Those inaccuracies have been captured by some customers and posted to social media. One TikTok user shared her experience of an AI-powered drive-thru McDonald’s lane capturing both her order and the order of a customer in the drive-thru lane next to hers.
Big Number
80%. That’s the percentage of Wendy’s customers who order at the drive-thru, according to the fast food chain.
Further Reading
Will Artificial Intelligence Be Taking Your Next Drive-Thru Order? (Forbes)
McDonald’s AI Voice Ordering Tests Underperforming On Accuracy, Survey Says (Restaurant Dive)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/anafaguy/2023/05/09/will-chatbots-take-over-the-drive-thru-wendys-becomes-latest-to-test/