Burger King is testing AI–powered headsets that track if staff are saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ to customers.
Restaurant Brands International – the Miami–based company that owns Burger King – said it is currently testing the OpenAI–powered headsets in 500 US restaurants.
The headsets feature an AI voice called Patty, who can send feedback to managers.
For example, if Patty detects that an employee hasn’t said key words like ‘welcome’, ‘please’ and ‘thank you’, it can flag it to the boss.
While Burger King hopes the headsets will help its restaurants to run more efficiently, they’ve been widely slated across social media.
‘Imagine having a rough 8 hour shift, a customer screaming at you over a missing pickle, and an AI whispering in your ear “did you say please?”,’ one user wrote on X.
Another added: ‘AI monitoring for politeness while fast food workers deal with angry customers, understaffing, and low pay is peak performative management.’
And one joked: ‘Peak dystopia, next they’ll fine you for breathing too loud into the headset.’
Burger King is testing AI–powered headsets that track if staff are saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ to customers
As well as tracking how friendly employees are to customers, the headsets can
recite recipes, and alert managers when inventories are low.
The system collects data on restaurant operations and shares it via ‘Patty,’ a voice that talks to employees through their headsets.
If the drink machine is low on Diet Coke, Patty will tell the store’s manager.
If a customer uses a QR code to report a messy bathroom, the manager will be alerted.
Employees can ask Patty how to make various menu items or tell Patty to remove items from digital menus if they´ve run out of ingredients.
Burger King said the intent is to use Patty as a coaching tool, not a tracker of individual employees.
‘It’s not about scoring individuals or enforcing scripts,’ it said in a statement.
‘It’s about reinforcing great hospitality and giving managers helpful, real–time insights so they can recognize their teams more effectively.’
While Burger King hopes the headsets will help its restaurants to run more efficiently, they’ve been widely slated across social media
Burger King added that the key words are ‘one of many signals to help managers understand service patterns.’
‘We believe hospitality is fundamentally human,’ Burger King said.
‘The role of this technology is to support our teams so they can stay present with guests.’
The news has not been received well across social media, with many people calling the headsets ‘dystopian’.
Taking to X, one user said: ‘An AI policing your manners at a fast food drive–through is honestly the most dystopian Monday morning feature I’ve heard about in a while.’
Another added: ‘We’re drawing ever closer to a Black Mirror episode cause what is this.’
And one joked: ‘In another episode of humans made their own horror story.’
Burger King isn’t the only company turning to AI tech.
The news comes shortly after it was revealed that Amazon is forcing its delivery drivers to wear AI glasses to shave seconds off deliveries.
The futuristic glasses use artificial intelligence (AI) to feed drivers turn–by–turn directions leading up to customers’ doorsteps.
They’re also fitted with cameras so drivers can scan packages and capture proof of delivery.
