Restaurant AI Is Evolving Rapidly

Artificial Intelligence or AI has infiltrated every aspect of our lives and the restaurant industry is no exception. It may seem difficult to imagine the restaurant industry with AI because it focuses on individuality and the human touch, but it is already a reality. We'll look at what artificial intelligence is and how it's being used in three different areas of the restaurant industry: back of the house, front of the house, and marketing.

AI is the process of teaching computers how to "think," and it is created by humans so that computers can mimic or rather copy human behavior.

Let's start with the back of the house. Miso Robotics is a California-based company that specializes in AI-driven robotic solutions for the kitchen. The company's AI kitchen assistant, "Flippy," assists with grilling, frying, prepping, and plating. The software that controls the robot is integrated with sensors and cameras, allowing it to "see" the food it is assisting in the preparation of and monitoring key parameters such as temperature management.

AI has paved a new path for technologies that go beyond the social impact of any other technology. AI has become a valuable resource to have because it influences and is a critical feature of many businesses.

Restaurants that integrate AI into their POS systems benefit from detailed analytical data generated by the system, which informs management about the utilization of inventory items, resulting in significant cost savings. Underutilization or product expiration can be avoided by tracking and purchasing items based on their use.

As we approach the front of the house, in 2019, McDonald's began using predictive AI technologies and projecting orders in drive-thrus. By analyzing past data on what consumers ordered and when McDonald's locations were able to predict rushes and even predict which meal would be the most popular at any given time of day. By predicting orders, the stores that used this technology were able to reduce wait times by 30 seconds on average, which is quite impressive given that drive-thru ordering experiences typically last only a few minutes.

Another application of AI in restaurants is the creation of Personalized Customer Experiences via Kiosks. For example, KFC uses face recognition technology at kiosks to recognize return customers and personalize their experience based on previous orders and preferences. It employs artificial intelligence face recognition technology to determine what a client might be interested in purchasing based on their gender, facial expressions, and other visual characteristics.

Discussing the marketing aspect of things, in the restaurant industry, artificial intelligence has played the most important role in improving the customer experience. Restaurants have a lot of data that isn't being exploited, and as a result, owners aren't getting a decent return on their investment. AI and ML work together to provide personalized suggestions to users by thoroughly analyzing individual search histories. 

By offering a customised experience, restaurant AI-enabled software can help turn huge data into insights and present well-defined recommendations for business owners and managers to gain new business prospects, increase client retention, and improve overall customer pleasure. 

Artificial Intelligence has drastically changed the way a large portion of the population consumes food and has improved food delivery time by providing relevant insights. Furthermore, AI has been widely used to track customer actions in order to provide restaurants with a better understanding of customer behavior. As a result, restaurants have been able to project a positive image of their commitment to their customers.