Artificial intelligence (AI) is changing the way we dine, and you’ve probably experienced it without even realizing it. Ever used a chatbot to order food or noticed how your favorite restaurant seems to know just what you like?
Have you ever wondered how a robot could help you choose the perfect wine to pair with your food? That’s AI at work, making everything from ordering to inventory management more efficient and personalized.
Welcome to the future of eating, where artificial intelligence transforms the culinary business.
Continue reading this article to stay informed about how AI is evolving in the food sector.
Surprising Ways AI is Changing Restaurants
When discussing AI in restaurants, it is common to avoid discussing large-scale automation or AI-powered robots. The majority of restaurants don't have substantial production requirements that call for automated solutions.
AI is far more likely to enhance restaurant marketing and expedite some of the establishment's regular operations, including front-of-house and back-of-house duties. For example, McD Tech Labs was acquired by IBM in 2021. Since then, McDonald's has experimented with artificial intelligence.
These are a few of the advancements brought about by this new technology.
1. Voice search for drive-through or self-service kiosks
Currently, 27% of all internet users use voice search, and nearly 40% of users prefer voice search over keyboards when looking for nearby restaurants. The range and complexity of tasks voice assistants—Amazon Alexa, Microsoft's Cortana, and Fireflies, to name a few—can help users with have increased along with their popularity.
Visitors have long used virtual assistants to locate restaurants. However, a new technology that is becoming more popular is voice ordering, which allows customers to make restaurant orders while multitasking or on the move using their smart devices.
Let’s say you are working from home, get tired and need to order some food while multitasking. Instead of pausing your work to order, you can simply use your AI-powered smart laptop to keep the work going. This ability can be seen in the AI laptops, as it includes smart assistants and the power of AI along with voice recognition ability.
2. Improved in-store customer experience
AI has the potential to enhance the customer experience both in-store and behind the scenes. According to QSRs, paper menus are becoming obsolete and are being replaced by digital menu boards. Digital signage can increase brand recognition by more than 47% and receive over 400% more views than static displays.
Digital menu boards can be updated, personalized, and customized in real-time with AI, which can help you draw in clients and highlight special offers.
For instance, you can include QR codes for interactive graphics and program various menu displays for different times of the day.
3. AI chatbots to take orders and answer questions
Nowadays, websites like Resy and OpenTable handle the majority of bookings. Furthermore, online orders are commonly placed through websites such as Toast or ChowNow.
AI-enabled chatbots can integrate multiple processes into a single platform. Instead of navigating a complex user interface (UI) of checkboxes and adjustments on an online purchasing platform, what if the customer could have a straightforward "conversation" with an AI chatbot?
To enable easy upsells, a bot could ask any question a waitress could, like "Would you like fries with that?" For instance, Domino's Pizza takes orders and updates them using a chatbot on Facebook Messenger.
Chatbots can also respond to queries like "Is there anywhere to park nearby?" and assist visitors in selecting the ideal reservation time for their gathering.
4. Reduces the wastage of food
More than one-third of the food produced worldwide is thought to be wasted due to wrong orders, excessive preparation, and inadequate inventory management data. AI helps your QSR collect and analyze sales and inventory data with demand forecasting, allowing you to stock only what is needed and reduce food waste.
Some restaurants already use machine learning algorithms to estimate demand and automatically modify inventory levels to maximize inventory management.
Final Thoughts
AI and meal-preparation robots are new technologies that are just beginning to make their way into retail spaces worldwide. The global AI market is expected to grow by 36% by 2030.
Many businesses are gaining a competitive edge by staying ahead of the AI adoption curve. By using these technologies, restaurants are boosting output, delivering exceptional customer service, and gaining a competitive advantage.
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