Hello, Eat.
Hi Bot, can I order a pizza?
No problem, it’s on its way.
Thanks.
Is this the future of food delivery: a quick chat online and then voila, there you have it, your next meal? Here, we explore the world of artificial intelligence (AI) and how it’s being introduced to the food industry. From ordering your dinner via Facebook Messenger, to being made a cocktail by a robot, it’s time to welcome the world of AI eating.
Dear Robot…
AI in the food industry has gone from strength to strength, with the likes of Facebook Messenger getting involved with a variety of restaurants and takeaways. For example, Burger King have built an AI software that interacts with customers through the messenger, allowing users to order their next meal from a set menu. Not only that, the bot shows users where the nearest Burger King is and allows them to pay through the app.
More recently, Domino’s Pizza have created Dom the pizza bot, an AI that’s accessible via Facebook Messenger. With a funny, personable tone of voice, Dom the bot allows users to order their preferred pizza via a single word or emoji. That’s right – if you’re hungry, just send Dom an emoji of a pizza! Obviously, before users can order with Dom, they will have to sign up to Domino’s easy order system, which involves creating a ‘favourite’ basket (their usual order) and logging in their payment details.
Sack the waiting staff
In Shanghai, China, they recently introduced a robot-only run KFC – the world’s first ever human-free fast food restaurant. Yep, you heard us right. Run completely by cute little robots, customers can now order, chat and pay for their food without interacting with a single human being.
Another example of robots taking over is Makr Shakr, a collection of creatives who have designed a robotic cocktail maker. Long gone are the cool bar staff and mixologists, instead you simply create your own cocktail via a tablet and watch as the long, metallic arms stir up a drink for you to enjoy.
Delivery!
So what does AI in food delivery mean for the likes of Deliveroo and Just Eat, who currently operate their businesses from a website and apps? In just a few years, we’ve said goodbye to the ‘let’s call for a takeaway’ and waved hello to online ordering, so surely AI delivery is just a quick download away from taking over.
Aside from ordering with AI, you’ve also got to consider how marketing will play a part. Once a certain amount of data has been collected from a user, businesses will be able to target certain people at specific times with friendly updates, such as ‘Hungry?’ or ‘Do you fancy pizza?’. For example, if your data picks up that one person often orders a pizza on a Friday at around 7pm, your bots can be programmed to make contact around that time, hitting them at their hungriest.
We know that it’ll be the bigger franchises that make the initial move to AI, but with time it’ll be interesting to see if your local curry house makes the move to Messenger and other similar chat apps. Who knows, maybe in a few years time your Friday night takeaway will just be an emoji away.
Will you be making friends with robots and introducing AI into your delivery service? Or maybe you already have it in place? Share your thoughts with us today.
