McDonald's is revamping its 43,000 restaurants with innovative technologies, including connected kitchen equipment, automated parking lots using artificial intelligence, and tools for managers, the WSJ reported.
The main goal of this update is to improve the experience for both customers and employees, who currently face issues such as equipment breakdowns or incorrect orders. According to Brian Rice, McDonald's chief information officer, the technology will help reduce the workload in restaurants.
The innovations come as McDonald's U.S. sales slowed in January, part of a broader decline in the fast-food industry. But the company hopes the new technology will help it grow its loyal customer base from 175 million to 250 million by 2027.
Starting in late 2023, McDonald's is partnering with Google Cloud to implement "edge computing," which allows restaurants to process data on-site, reducing the time and cost of sending it to the cloud. This will help, among other things, predict potential equipment failures, such as fryers or McFlurry machines. The company also plans to use computer vision to check the accuracy of orders before they are delivered to customers.
McDonald's is also working on implementing voice technology for parking lots and a virtual manager that automates administrative tasks such as shift scheduling for managers. Compared to other fast food restaurants, McDonald's is heavily investing in new digital technologies, which gives it an advantage in improving customer loyalty.