Taco Bell Re-evaluates AI Use in Drive-Thru After Series of Viral Blunders

Taco Bell is re-evaluating its use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology in its drive-thru ordering systems, following a widespread circulation of humorous videos documenting technical errors that have garnered millions of views. In one such comical clip, a customer is shown disrupting the system with his bizarre request for 18,000 cups of water, while in another, a person's frustration escalates as the AI system continuously prompts him to add more drinks to his order.

Initial Results of AI Implementation at Taco Bell

AI Technology Implementation: Since 2023, this fast-food chain began implementing AI technology in over 500 of its branches across the United States. The primary goal of this expansion was to reduce errors and improve order processing speed, but the initial results of AI in drive-thru have shown unexpected challenges.

Dan Matthews' Statements: In this context, Dan Matthews, Taco Bell's Chief Digital and Technology Transformation Officer, explained to the Wall Street Journal that the deployment of AI voice experienced significant challenges. He commented, "Sometimes it disappoints me, but sometimes it really surprises me." Matthews affirmed that the company "learns a lot" from this experience, and will reconsider its future strategies regarding where to implement AI, indicating the possibility of not using it in busy drive-thru restaurants. Mr. Matthews emphasized that there are times when human efficiency is higher in taking orders, especially during peak hours. He added, "We will train teams to identify appropriate times to use AI voice, and when human intervention or manual monitoring is the optimal choice."

Customer Complaints and System Challenges

Online Complaints: Online complaints are escalating as dissatisfied customers resort to social media platforms to highlight recurring errors and problems in AI service. For example, a popular Instagram video, which has surpassed 21.5 million views, documents a man trying to order a "large Mountain Dew," while the AI voice continuously responds with "What will you be drinking with that?".

McDonald's Experiences: This is not the first incident where the fast-food industry has faced challenges with AI in order processing. Last year, McDonald's withdrew its AI system from its drive-thru restaurants after the technology repeatedly misinterpreted customer orders. Errors included mistakenly adding bacon to a customer's ice cream and accidentally adding hundreds of dollars worth of chicken nuggets to another customer's order (Source: The Guardian, April 2, 2025). McDonald's decision to end its trial with IBM's AI-powered voice ordering system, which began in 2021, came in July 2024 after the experiment failed to meet expectations in order accuracy and understanding different accents (Source: CNBC, July 3, 2024).

AI in the Fast Food Industry: Is it the Optimal Solution?

Other Fast-Food Chains: Many other fast-food chains have shown increasing interest in integrating AI into their systems. In addition to McDonald's and Taco Bell, companies like Wendy's, Hardee's, Carl's Jr, Del Taco, White Castle, Panda Express, and Domino's have experimented with AI technology in drive-thru service or in managing their operations (Source: Forbes, March 5, 2024). This move reflects an industry trend towards automation, driven by rising labor costs and worker shortages, in addition to increasing demand for speed and accuracy of service, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic (Source: CNBC, July 3, 2024), and California's decision to raise the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20 an hour (Source: Scioto Post, March 23, 2025).

Challenges of Implementing AI in Drive-Thru Service

Inherent Challenges: Despite potential benefits, AI systems in drive-thru face inherent challenges. These include the noisy environment of drive-thru lanes, the difficulty of interpreting different dialects and diverse customer accents, as well as the complexity of some menu items that require precise understanding (Source: CNN Business, June 19, 2023). Some companies, such as Presto Automation Inc., which provides AI technologies for drive-thru, have revealed that they rely on human agents in countries like the Philippines and India to complete approximately 70% of orders, indicating that full automation is still far off (Source: The Guardian, April 2, 2025). Although AI proponents claim their systems can achieve over 90% accuracy and speed up service by 10%, the risks related to brand reputation and customer frustration due to errors remain (Source: CNBC, July 3, 2024).

Partial Successes: Nevertheless, despite some viral errors faced by Taco Bell, it states that two million orders have been successfully processed using AI voice since its introduction.