A Taco Bell AI is either the best idea of the 21st century or one that's going to make you question your choices (2024)

The voice taking your order for a Doritos Locos taco at the Taco Bell drive-thru might belong to an AI server. Taco Bell parent company Yum! Brands is spreading its voice AI feature to hundreds of new locations across the U.S. The Mexican food chain has found early success with embedding AI in its drive-thrus, and the company has designs on going global with the technology at its other restaurants, including KFC.

More than a hundred Taco Bell drive-thrus in 13 states already employ AI to take orders from drivers. The response has been positive enough to warrant a major push by executives to reach hundreds more by the end of the year. The idea is to improve and streamline operations behind the scenes. The kitchen gets less chaotic when there isn’t someone at the microphone, and employees can focus on cooking and other tasks, only taking orders when the AI is overwhelmed.

“Yum! Brands is integrating digital and technology into all aspects of our business with exciting new capabilities, and AI is a core piece of that strategy. We’re expanding and accelerating our AI capabilities like Voice AI to deliver leading-edge technologies to our franchisees and to enhance the consumer and team member experience,” Yum! Brands Chief Innovation Officer Lawrence Kim explained in a statement. “With over two years of fine-tuning and testing the drive-thru Voice AI technology, we’re confident in its effectiveness in optimizing operations and enhancing customer satisfaction.”

Yum! claims the voice AI platform has made itself invaluable at the Taco Bell spots that have been part of pilot tests for the voice AI. Those locations reported a higher rate of accurate orders and garnered higher customer satisfaction because of the faster and more consistent process. Of course, even several hundred additional Taco Bell locations adding voice AI won’t make it universal as there are nearly 7,500 Taco Bells in the U.S. alone.

AI Order Up

Taco Bell may have a rosy view of voice AI at drive-thrus, but the tech has had an occasional unwanted onion in its delivery. McDonald’s has quietly shrunk its own ambitions for voice AI despite a long and complex effort over many years that saw the creation and sale to IBM of McD Tech Labs. On the other hand, Wendy’s pilot program in partnership with Google has gone well, while the company behind Hardee’s and Carl’s Jr. signed deals with three different voice AI developers to bring the option to as many locations as possible.

Yum! has already begun its own plans to extend its voice AI globally. Five KFC restaurants in Australia are currently testing voice AI at drive-thrus. The company claims there’s been enough positive feedback to start prepping a wider rollout across KFC and other Yum! Brands restaurants.

“Innovation is ingrained in our DNA at Taco Bell, and we view Voice AI as a means to improve the team member and consumer experiences,” Taco Bell Chief Digital and Technology Officer Dane Mathews said. “Tapping into AI gives us the ability to ease team members’ workloads, freeing them to focus on front-of-house hospitality. It also enables us to unlock new and meaningful ways to engage with our customers."

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