Ordering food at the first artificial intelligence-enable KFC outlet in Beijing just became easier. The store, which opened on Friday in Beijing with the help of Baidu, China’s search engine giant, uses a robot to help the diner decide what to order.
Shanghaiist reported that after entering the store, a machine would scan the face of customers. The computer linked to the robot identifies the face, gender, age and mood of the diner, and based on those data would recommend a food combination for the customer.
Robot Recommendations
Using algorithm, chances are if the customer is a young man in his 20s, the robot would likely recommend roasted chicken wings, coke and crispy chicken hamburger for lunch. If the diner is a woman in her 50s, the likely recommendation for breakfast is porridge and soybean milk.
The computer stores the data as well as the purchase history and would remember when the customer returns to the store for another meal. Using the face-scanning technology would speed up the ordering process.
“Our innovations make use of cutting-edge technologies and they will help to attract more young consumers who prefer fashionable new things. The digitalization of the restaurant will also help provide faster and easier services,” Zhao Li, general manager of Beijing KFC said.
Augmented Reality Games
Besides the face-recognition technology, the KFC outlet in Beijing has augmented reality games using table stickers, although it is a feature common among 300 KFC stores in the capital city, Techcrunch reported. Baidu also worked with another KFC outlet in Shanghai using a robot customer service agent to listen and recognize customer orders with the use of natural language input.
Some customers, though, may be unnerved by the retention of their images for recognition purposes. The robot recommendations are also just suggestions, the customer may opt to order food completely different from what was suggested.