Autonomous restaurants are increasingly appearing throughout North America, with several new entrants into the space in the past couple of weeks alone, despite consumers’ hesitations. Fast-casual salad chain Sweetgreen opened its second automated location, featuring its “Infinite Kitchen” technology, Tuesday (Dec. 12) in Huntington Beach,...
Even while restaurants’ hiring recovers, McDonald’s and other brands are automating to reduce headcount and labor costs. That restaurant hiring might lead to problems. This, as the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) data reported earlier this month revealed that the restaurant workforce grew significantly...
Major bakery-café fast-casual chain Panera Bread is turning its focus to off-premise channels with its new digital-order-only format. On Friday (June 10), the brand announced the opening of a new “Panera To Go” concept in Chicago, the first of three test locations planned throughout the...
Today in food commerce, Jack in the Box tests out robotic fry cooks and drink dispensers, while Chipotle looks to grow its digital drive-thru footprint. Plus, PYMNTS data reveal that the online grocery space is growing quickly by the month. Restaurants Leverage Automated Solutions to...
August 02, 2017
There’s been no shortage of speculation — including doomsday declarations — about the potential impact of automation, smart technology and artificial intelligence (AI) on the employment market. But could a realistic future have humans working and living alongside IoT-connected devices, collaborating rather than being replaced? In the latest issue of the Intelligence of Things (IoT) Tracker, PYMNTS […]
February 28, 2022
Restaurants’ continuing labor challenges, exacerbated by consumers’ rising demand for restaurant meals, are making rapid digital innovation more important than ever in the industry, with brands relying on new technologies to get orders from their kitchens into the hands of consumers. Many restaurants have been turning to robotics to keep operations running. For instance, Columbus, […]
