Fast food giant McDonald’s unveiled plans for its largest expansion ever, aiming to open 10,000 more locations in the next four years. It will get some help from a multiyear agreement with Google, which is rolling out its cloud data and generative artificial intelligence technology in McDonald’s restaurants globally.
McDonald’s said using Google technology will help it speed service and make better use of millions of data points collected across its global system. Restaurant employees will use a chatbot called “Ask Pickles” to boost productivity, Bloomberg reported.
The chain, which currently operates 40,000 locations, will introduce significant advancements to its restaurant and customer platforms, including self-service ordering kiosks and the mobile app. The companies said McDonald’s would be the largest food service retailer to use Google Distributed Cloud.
In fiscal 2024, McDonald’s expects nearly 2% of systemwide sales growth, net new restaurant growth of more than 4%, and operating margin in the mid-to-high 40% range. The company will increase capital spending to about $2.5 billion.
Its My McDonald’s rewards members generated more than $20 billion in sales over the past year, McDonald’s said at an investor event. The global fast-food giant also wants to scale up its delivery, drive-through, and mobile-order business, and improve its core menu items.
What’s Next: McDonald’s is also introducing a new small-format restaurant called CosMc’s, which will be led by beverages and a small menu of food items and emphasize to-go purchases. The first location is Bolingbrook, Ill. It plans 10 locations by the end of 2024
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