Listen Now: McDonald’s and IBM

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McDonalds is cooking up a new partnership. I’m Brian Banmiller on Business.

The golden arches is pairing up with IBM to enhance its automated order taking service. IBM will help scale automated order taking across all McDonald’s markets and incorporate additional languages, dialects and menus. McDonald’s started testing artificial intelligence at drive-thrus in ten Chicago area restaurants last spring. While there were positive changes, for customers and staff, the system needed improvement. According to end-gadget.com it was only 85% accurate, meaning human employees needed to step in for about a fifth of orders. Now IBM will take over all technology for the restaurants. A process that will take more than a few years to roll out across all markets. While company executives are excited about the possibility of a smoother process, it’s unclear how employees feel. On one hand they won’t have to take drunken food orders at 2 a.m. On the other hand automation means job cuts. So far McDonald’s has not released any statements about what this means for employees, just that it’s working to make things easier for everyone. Time will tell. Brian Banmiller, CBS News.

About Brian

CBS News Radio national business journalist Brian Banmiller has spent more than 40 years in the news industry, covering business, politics and the economy on television, radio and in print. Currently, his “Banmiller on Business” reports are delivered to an audience of millions nationwide.