Starbucks is getting AI help for baristas
The coffee giant says the new AI program will "revolutionize everyday operations"
Photo: VCG (Getty)
Starbucks is partnering with Microsoft Azure for AI-powered solutions to one of the greatest creative challenges of the modern workforce: how to make and deliver a cup of coffee.
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The new Green Dot Assist program, says Starbucks, promises to “revolutionize everyday operations” by reminding baristas how to do things like make a lavender oat latte and suggest food pairings. It also promises to assist managers with spontaneous staff shortages, reduce the number of important decisions required in their role, and allow them to deflect some in-store staff questions to AI.
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A promotional video in the announcement focuses on three tasks: allowing staff to ask specific questions, assisting them in real time, and acting swiftly. Starbucks believes these three elements, which were apparently unheard-of in the previously all-human work environment, amount to “a bold innovation that will unlock new possibilities for the coffeehouse leaders who serve customers around the world.” It's unclear whether the software will help the baristas spell your name correctly on your cup.
The Green Dot Assist program was introduced at a company conference in Las Vegas this week. It will pilot in 35 locations, with a broader launch throughout the U.S. and Canada in the fall.
The coffee giant is coming off a bad second-quarter, the fifth in a row that saw a dip in same-store sales. In April, it announced new technology that promises to reduce wait times from four minutes to two, utilizing something called the Siren Craft System, which mostly appears to be pulling espresso before steaming milk.
Around this time last year, McDonald's abandoned a two-year experiment with IBM AI in its drive-thrus, although didn’t rule out AI assistance in the future. Yum Brands, home to KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, partnered with Nvidia in March to integrate AI technology.
Starbucks was one of several fast-food chains that set up shop in the Metaverse, in an uncanny-valley twist on its rewards program, but pulled out in March 2024.