AI & Orchestration
9 min
What Operators Should Look for in Drive-Thru AI
Dana R.
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Separating credible AI from hype
Most drive-thru AI pitches lean on impressive demos rather than evidence from live, high-volume lanes. Operators evaluating these systems need a checklist grounded in operational reality, not marketing language.
Ask how the system behaves during a rush, not just during a quiet demo. Ask what happens when recognition is uncertain. Ask for a revenue-per-lane-minute number from a comparable environment, not a lab.
Questions worth asking a vendor
Does the system require a new POS, a new app, or new hardware to prove value? If the answer is yes to any of these, the pilot cost and timeline will look very different from what the sales deck implies.