The rise and fall of AI at the McDonald’s drive-thru

McDonald's declared that it will no longer use IBM for the partnership after July 31, 2024. Source: Unsplash

The fast-food industry has been turning to AI for years in the hopes that it might improve efficiency, cut down on labour costs, and, ideally, make customers' lives easier. One of the pioneers was McDonald's, which in 2021 teamed up with IBM to test an AI system for voice ordering at around 100 drive-thru locations throughout the US.

Customers were supposed to be able to drive up, loudly state their orders into the drive-thru microphone, and then have an AI record all of that,...

19 June 2024 | Artificial Intelligence

AI comes to Ireland’s remote Islands through Microsoft’s ‘Skill Up’ program

On Inishbofin, a small island off the western coast of Ireland where the population hovers around 170 and the main industries are farming, fishing and tourism, a quiet technology revolution has been taking place.

Artificial intelligence (AI), once thought to be the exclusive domain of big cities and tech hubs, is making its way to the furthest corners of rural Ireland, empowering locals with cutting-edge tools to boost their businesses and preserve their traditional...

19 June 2024 | Applications