Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy: Drive-Thru Orders Will Not Use AI
Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy stated that the company does not plan to use artificial intelligence for drive-thru orders, emphasizing the importance of human interaction at the drive-thru. The use of AI in the backend is still under evaluation, but front-line conversations will not be replaced.
He told CNBC that he hopes for a human-to-human experience in customer service and will not use technology to replace this interaction, as it is key to creating a warm environment for customers. Following a report by Fox Business, the company did not immediately provide further comments. He also acknowledged that practices may adjust according to customer behavior but did not specify the conditions for change.
The private company is projected to have system sales of approximately $23.9 billion in the U.S. by 2025, with a franchise disclosure figure of $23.92 billion. With about 3,000 stores, 179 new locations are expected to open that year, making sales second only to McDonald's and Starbucks. The franchise disclosure also indicates a 14% revenue growth to $10.3 billion in 2025, with net profit increasing by only 1% to $1.05 billion. The company remains family-owned and has no plans to publicly sell shares.
Competitors are moving in the opposite direction. McDonald's announced on its Investor Day in September that it is testing a voice system named Archy, capable of taking orders in English and Spanish. Wendy's is advancing its partnership with Google Cloud on FreshAI. Chick-fil-A has implemented elevated kitchens, four drive-thru lanes, and conveyor belts in McDonough, Georgia to improve food delivery, set to open in August 2024, while order conversations will still be handled by employees. Cathy referred to the technological approach as a combination of humans and technology, mentioning the potential for drone delivery in the future.
The buyers are drive-thru customers and franchise operators, while the sellers are voice model suppliers and the staff still at the window. The event is driven by competitors automating orders, which Chick-fil-A has chosen not to follow. Manual ordering maintains wage and training costs and preserves its customer service margin; voice suppliers lose a high-traffic client. The pressure is on staffing at peak drive-thru times, while franchisees benefit by prioritizing accuracy and greetings as reasons for repeat business.
Public statements did not provide information on drive-thru labor costs, order accuracy, or voice system pricing. What can be verified is the boundary: AI can be tested in the backend, but drive-thru orders will not be replaced, with system sales around $23.9 billion.
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Andrew Cathy is the third-generation operator after founder S. Truett Cathy. The company has long exchanged Sunday closures, high franchisee royalties, and private ownership for store output rather than capital market valuations. With projected system sales of about $23.9 billion in 2025, a 14% revenue increase, and only a 1% rise in net profit to $1.05 billion, it indicates that most incremental gains are retained in-store execution and costs, rather than translating into profits for public shareholders.
Funds remain within franchise operations, not flowing to voice order contracts. Elevated kitchens, four lanes, and conveyor belts have automated the back of house and food delivery, while the McDonough store retains window conversations. The motivation is to integrate speed into equipment and workflows while keeping the margin in greetings. The family does not sell shares, thus avoiding the need to cut order-taker positions to offset labor cost narratives in the public market.
This approach is similar to In-N-Out's long-standing avoidance of McDonald's menu and automation pace, and contrasts with Taco Bell's customer complaints in 2025 due to voice ordering. McDonald's is testing bilingual orders with Archy, and Wendy's is integrating FreshAI with Google Cloud, indicating the industry is in a trial phase of replacing window labor with model calls. Chick-fil-A is in a control phase: automating kitchens but not the first greeting.
The essence is a shift in pricing power. The cost advantage in fast food is moving from manual ordering to voice models; whoever replaces the window first will pay based on call volume rather than shifts. Chick-fil-A's refusal to make this shift keeps customer service as a non-outsourced product. With profits only increasing by 1% while sales rise by 14%, it shows that the current scale is supported by in-store execution rather than model savings; once competitors stabilize voice accuracy, this boundary will shift to a cost difference, not just a brand difference.
ABAB News · Cognitive Laws
- The back of house can be automated, but the first greeting may not be.
- The wages saved are sometimes the very reason customers pay.
- Private companies do not need to use layoffs to hedge against valuations.