Associated Incidents
Fast-food chains like McDonald's, Sonic, and Chipotle have been experimenting with AI-powered voice bots for taking phone and drive-thru orders for a few years.
But some McDonald's customers on TikTok are expressing frustration – and in some cases uncontrollable laughter – after run-ins with voice bots that can't get their orders correctly.
A viral post by @themaddivlog shows a young woman in an Adidas beanie struggling to order a cup of vanilla ice cream.
"I just want a large water and a cup of ice cream," the TikToker insists.
She grows exasperated when the order display menu shows she ordered two butters and four ketchup packets. The text overlay on the video states: "Fighting with McDonald's robot."
After multiple attempts to get her order straight, she ends the video:
"McDonald's, I'm done. We're done."
Another TikToker generated 97,000 views on a post, where she explained how "robots are taking over the world" and they're messing up her McDonald's order. She said the voice bot put 9 sweet teas on her order tab, when she only ordered one sweet tea.
Another frustrated drive-thru customer posted a TikTok video titled, "The McDonald's robot is wild."
@typical_redhead_ could be heard laughing and snorting as she told the bot "stop" a few times. The digital menu board showed an excessive amount of McNugget meals ordered, totaling over $250.
TikToker @That_usa_guy_ was not as amused.
His video showed the bot replacing his order for a Mountain Dew with a medium Coke.
In the bot's defense, McDonald's restaurants don't serve Mountain Dew products. They serve Coca-Cola beverages.
When the TikToker tried to correct the beverage mistake, the voice bot appeared to ignore his request and went on to give him his check total.
"No, that's not correct," he told the bot.
He then canceled the meal and started over.
At that point, the bot handed the order to a "crew member" to complete the meal.
McDonald's has been testing AI-powered ordering in its drive-thru lanes since 2019. Some digital menu boards use artificial intelligence to upsell menu items based on trending food items or the weather. Those restaurants still have restaurant workers taking orders, but some McDonald's restaurants have voice bots. It's unclear how many.
McDonald's could not be reached for comment.
Despite the apparent kinks demonstrated by a few social media vloggers, restaurant chains are embracing automation and robots to help operations amid labor shortages. Checkers & Rally's, Taco Bell, Sonic, Panera Bread, and Popeyes are testing voice bots in drive-thru lanes. Chipotle uses bots to take phone orders, and is testing a robot fry cook in California.
Last year, McDonald's opened a new format restaurant in Texas that's nearly fully automated. It has an order-ahead lane for picking up digital orders from a food and beverage conveyor. Customers place orders on kiosks and pick them up on shelves.