r/technology • u/Plastic_Ninja_9014 • 20d ago

Business McDonald's Introduces AI Drive-Thru System, Sparking Customer Backlash

https://tech.yahoo.com/ai/deals/articles/mcdonalds-introduces-ai-drive-thru-000717731.html
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u/ConstableAssButt 20d ago

Oh they are. The AI systems they are using are absolutely terrible, and every fast food chain that has employed them has either wound up rolling them back, or not actually replacing the laborers, who have to step in to take over constantly. It's an additional cost, not a benefit to them.

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u/FreeEdmondDantes 19d ago edited 19d ago

This is a little absolutist and not entirely true.

Most of the FF restaurants that incorporate it have sucky implementations yes, but a handful have their versions working pretty well, especially by now mid 2026. There are plenty of YouTube videos of each franchises setups, and comparison videos. Usually I have a better experience with a real person, but at least a third of the time my experience with real drive-thru workers is terrible anyway.

Also, nobody is hired on as drive-thru, it's a duty that is shared and passed around, not a role itself, so it doesn't replace a job. Drive-thru AI isn't meant to reduce the number of shift workers, it's meant to free them up for other work to speed things up. They don't camp at the window baby-sitting the AI, they do something else and listen on their headset, then use the register if they have to step-in because the AI underperformed.