McDonald’s AI drive-thru is going viral, but for the wrong reasons. Customers have become frustrated at not being able to order their food, leading to the AI’s testing being terminated.
Fast Food Chain was running a pilot project of an AI-powered ordering assistant in collaboration with IBM, but now the project will come to an end as the technology will be removed from around 100 stores across the country.
According to an email sent to franchisees last Thursday (June 13), Restaurant BusinessThis test will be removed by July 26.
“While there has been success to date, we feel there is an opportunity to explore voice ordering solutions more broadly,” Mason Smoot, chief restaurant officer for McDonald’s USA, wrote in a system message.
“After a thoughtful review, McDonald’s has decided to end our current partnership with IBM on AOT and will discontinue this technology at all restaurants where it is being tested before July 26, 2024.”
@that_usa_guy Trying out McDonald’s AI drive thru… again @McDonald’s Corporate #fail
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Smoot explained that the company will “continue to evaluate plans to make an informed decision on a future voice ordering solution by the end of the year.”
Weird tips from McDonald’s AI drive-thru
For now, the following suggestions are being made: Bacon-Topped Ice Cream Cones This process will be stopped as the Chicago-based company returns to human order picking.
Although AI has been in the works for quite some time, its pilot testing began two years ago.
Since the pilot began, customers have been sharing their experiences with the automated order-taking robot on social media. In one video, a man placed his order and can then be heard saying “You added bacon to my ice cream cone, I don’t want bacon.”
When the AI removed the bacon, it changed the order to three ice cream cones instead of two. When the customer was told he only wanted one, the machine deleted the order altogether.
@typical_redhead_ I thought TikTok would appreciate this 💀 #FYP #For you #ForYouPage #comedy #fail
♬ Monkeys Going Monkeys – Kevin MacLeod & Kevin the Monkey
Another customer placed an order and then watched as the machine rapidly increased the amount of McNuggets it made, pushing the order number to over 2000.
Featured image: via Ideogram
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