AI and QSR, The future of fast food.
As a hospitality consultant I get paid to help businesses generate more revenue by improving systems. That being said, most of my business is spent in the private sector...until now. My latest project is in QSR, a paid investigation if you will. AI or artificial intelligence is not that far away, and with rising food costs and a lacking labour pool, it's basically here.
Over the last seven months, fast food franchises have spent hundreds of millions of dollars to acquire technology companies that specialize in artificial intelligence and machine learning. And the fast-food chains have even established a new tech hub in the heart of Silicon Valley where a team of engineers and data scientists is working on voice-recognition software.
The goal? To replace stupid people.
The Potential of AI
Today, artificial intelligence is employed across the industry to provide an intelligent, convenient and informed customer service experience. And most of the excitement surrounding its enterprise application surrounds its machine learning capabilities.
Machine learning is a method of data analysis involving algorithms and statistical models that computer systems use to effectively perform specific tasks, without using explicit instructions and instead relying on models and deduction. Machine learning is often attributed to powerful computing systems that pore over significant amounts of data in order to learn from it.
With more restaurants seeking new ways to advance their operations and increase their performance, artificial intelligence has the opportunity to improve numerous features of a forward-thinking quick-service restaurant. From reducing operational costs to increasing efficiency, increasing revenue and improving customer service, we are on the cusp of fundamentally changing the way quick-serves operate.
Have a look at this video, AI burger robot at work!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CbL_3le40qc
CONCLUSION
What jobs will NEVER be replaced by AI ?
Jobs that intrinsically require the person to be a REAL HUMAN, not just if it can replicate all the five senses of a human being and has the same or better cognitive and mental abilities as a human being, and appear exactly human. In other words, any job that requires the human brain and heart will NEVER be replaced. I would like to believe that "Chefs" are amongst those jobs. Although many of the skills could be machined learned, I don't believe the creative, intuitive and interactive abilities of a skilled chef can be replicated by machines...at least for a while yet. This is why it is so important to keep your mind open to new ideas and styles of cooking. Learn something new about your craft every day! Anyway, something to think about on these cold, rainy November days. Stay tuned this week for some Seasonal festive posts, something on the lighter side! Cheers, and have a great day!