Touchscreens, conveyor belts: McDonald's opens first largely automated location [View all]

Source: The Guardian

Touchscreens, conveyor belts: McDonald’s opens first largely automated location

Test restaurant near Fort Worth, Texas, has drawn ire of activists calling for living wage

Erum Salam
Fri 23 Dec 2022 11.00 GMT

The first mostly non-human-run McDonald’s is open for business just outside Fort Worth, Texas.

At just one location so far, customers can drive to the golden arches and expect to be served a Big Mac or a Happy Meal by a food and beverage conveyor instead of an actual, real-life human being.

A spokesperson for McDonald’s told the Guardian that the test concept “is not fully automated”, emphasizing that the restaurant does employ a team comparable to that of a traditional store.

Smaller than a typical McDonald’s, the location is geared towards customers on the go rather than those who plan to dine inside. It limits interactions between team members and customers and uses “enhanced technology that allows the restaurant team to begin preparing customers’ orders when they’re near the restaurant”.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2022/dec/23/mcdonalds-automated-workers-fort-worth-texas