A robot may soon take your Blizzard order at Dairy Queens across the country. The fast-food chain has become the latest to adopt AI chatbot technology in the drive-thru lanes.
“We’re committed to delivering an exceptional experience to our fans and our staff,” a Dairy Queen IT leader in a news release.
The chain is working with Presto, a company that already provided similar technology to Carl’s Jr. and Captain D’s.
It’s not clear if the technology is coming to Memphis. Presto claims it will make staff more efficient by allowing them to concentrate on other parts of the restaurant. However, economists believe it is a cost-saving strategy.
“Fast food is so, so squeezed on their margins that what they’re really doing is they’re trying to cut costs at any standpoint,” explained Michael Kofoed, assistant economics professor at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
Kofoed told FOX13 fast food chains are trying to compete with fast casual dining restaurants that offer a better dining experience at similar prices.
“If I can go spend $10 at Chili’s and get a burger, fries that are better than the ones I can get at McDonald’s, that puts downward pressure on fast food prices,” he said.
In May 2023, the Memphis economy had roughly 14,500 fast food and counter workers and 2,760 fast food cooks, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics.