Since the late 1940s, drive-thrus have grown to become a convenient staple in the restaurant industry across the nation.
For decades, consumers have enjoyed the option of ordering food at their favorite restaurant without leaving the comfort of their cars. While restaurant employees have historically handled drive-thru orders while maintaining face-to-face communication with customers, that may soon become a thing of the past.
Taco Bell, which is owned by Yum Brands (YUM) , is the latest fast-food chain to hop on a startling new trend in the restaurant industry that is slowly cutting human connection out of the picture. The company just announced that it will be expanding voice artificial intelligence technology at hundreds of its restaurants in the U.S. by the end of 2024.
This means that drive-thru customers at these locations will be talking to a computer instead of an actual human being when they order their food.
“Tapping into AI gives us the ability to ease team members’ workloads, freeing them to focus on front-of-house hospitality,” said Dane Mathews, Taco Bell’s chief digital and technology officer in a press release. “It also enables us to unlock new and meaningful ways to engage with our customers.”
Taco Bell claims that the voice AI technology has already been implemented in over 100 restaurants in the U.S. across 13 states. The company currently operates over 7,000 locations nationwide.
Read more here from The Street.
