McDonald’s is testing a new artificial intelligence order-taking system at drive-thrus nationwide as the fast food giant pushes forward with its latest technological innovation.
The Independent reports that McDonald’s has begun testing an AI-powered order-taking system at five locations across the United States, marking the company’s renewed effort to integrate advanced technology into its drive-thru operations. The system, called ArchIQ, represents a significant step in the company’s newly announced brand strategy known as McDonald’s NEXT.
The initiative was unveiled this week by CEO Chris Kempczinski, who emphasized that the company aims to provide both hospitality and speed without forcing customers to choose between the two. However, this isn’t the first attempt by McDonalds to bring AI to the drive-thru. Breitbart News reported in 2024 that the fast food chain scrapped an AI drive-thru test at 100 restaurants.
According to Restaurant Business Magazine, the ArchIQ system is currently operational at five test locations. An X account identifying itself as McFranchisee, which claims to represent a McDonald’s franchisee, provided additional details about the project in a post on Tuesday. The account stated that McDonald’s has been involved in automated order-taking technology for approximately eight years.
“We sold our in-house model to IBM and moved on as it wasn’t good enough for our needs,” McFranchisee wrote. The account also revealed that Google is affiliated with the new ArchIQ project, something the franchisee said they had wanted three years prior. “As mentioned below, I wanted to hire Google (who uses NVIDIA) to service our AOT 3 years ago and found out today that Google is behind this project,” the post stated.
The franchisee account reported that the test stores have processed over one million transactions, with approximately 90 percent of orders completed without requiring human intervention. McFranchisee also indicated that Google Edge Cloud blades will be installed at every McDonald’s location in the country ahead of a broader rollout.
The artificial intelligence system is designed to extend beyond drive-thru order-taking. According to the franchisee account, “Archy will not only assist drive-thru orders but act as a master brain to help managers run a better restaurant. It’s like a personal assistant that alerts you to potential bottlenecks or issues.”
The announcement has generated considerable discussion on social media, with many responses expressing skepticism or opposition to the technology. One commenter referenced similar systems at competing chains, writing, “We all hate the system installed at Wendy’s. We hate the kiosks at McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Taco Bell that we are asked to use instead of talking to a person. We will hate this too. Say goodbye to customers.”
Another person expressed preference for human interaction, stating, “No one wants this — we like dealing with smiling faces.” The McFranchisee account responded to this concern by noting that employees would still be present at other points in the service process, writing, “We still smile at the cash and present window — this is just at the speaker.”
The ArchIQ testing follows McDonald’s previous venture into artificial intelligence for hiring purposes, which encountered problems when an AI-powered chatbot exposed data of job candidates. That incident highlighted some of the risks associated with deploying artificial intelligence systems in customer-facing and data-sensitive operations.
Advances in AI threaten all types of jobs, from entry level jobs in McDonald’s to experienced software developers. Breitbart News social media director Wynton Hall has written his instant bestseller Code Red: The Left, the Right, China, and the Race to Control AI to serve as the definitive guide on how the MAGA movement can create positions on AI that benefit humanity without handing control of our nation to the leftists of Silicon Valley or allowing the Chinese to take over the world.
Read more at the Independent here.
Lucas Nolan is a reporter for Breitbart News covering issues of AI, free speech, and online censorship.