The next time you walk into a Burger King and notice the staff being extra polite, don’t be surprised. The fast food chain is piloting an AI assistant that monitors how employees interact with customers via their headsets.
As The Verge reports, Burger King’s new “Patty” AI assistant is powered by an OpenAI model and listens for keywords like “welcome to Burger King,” “please,” and “thank you,” and compiles data for managers to understand how friendly their location is.
Burger King argues that Patty won’t listen to all employee conversations and is only meant to make its outlets more hospitable. “It’s truly meant to be a coaching and operational tool to really help our restaurants manage complexities and stay focused on a great guest experience,” Thibault Roux, Burger King’s chief digital officer, tells Fast Company. “Guests want our service to be more friendly, and that’s ultimately what we’re trying to achieve here.”
Patty will also be able to help workers with recipes and inventory. It’s part of a larger BK Assistant platform that collects data from all areas of the chain’s business, including drive-thru counters, kitchens, and inventory. The assistant can answer questions like how many strips of bacon go into a burger or how to clean a jar. It can also proactively alert managers when equipment isn’t working or when items are out of stock.
For example, the AI kept track of how many times an employee told customers, “I’m sorry, we don’t have that.” Burger King used that to bring back apple pie, which was removed in 2020.
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Burger King began testing Patty a year ago at about 100 US locations and is now expanding it to 500. By the end of this year, the retail chain wants it in every outlet in the country.
Wendy’s, Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, KFC, and McDonald’s have been experimenting with AI, with mixed results. Burger King’s Patty rollout, meanwhile, has drawn strong reactions on social media. “I don’t want to go to a fast food joint where there’s a metaphorical gun to the employee’s head to force good behavior,” writes one Redditor. “Imagine having a bad day, forgetting to say ‘please’ once, and having an AI log it for your manager to review later. That’s not coaching, that’s surveillance with extra steps,” an X user notes.
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Jibin is a tech news writer based out of Ahmedabad, India. Previously, he served as the editor of iGeeksBlog and is a self-proclaimed tech enthusiast who loves breaking down complex information for a broader audience.
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