Chick-fil-A Takes Stand Against AI Trend McDonald's Embraced, Holds the Line on 'Human to Human' Service
Customers who enjoy Chick-fil-A can still expect to hear “My Pleasure” from a human rather than a robot for the foreseeable future.
Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy said that the company will not incorporate artificial intelligence ordering at their restaurants, CNBC reported on Oct. 4.
While the fast food chain will explore AI integrations for other components of their work, they have no plans to add AI voice ordering in their drive-thrus, unlike many of their competitors.
“From our experience, we really want that hospitality to be human to human,” Cathy described in an interview with CNBC.
“We’re not gonna substitute that interaction with technology, because we feel like that hospitality is so important to create that warm environment for consumers.”
Chick-fil-A is turning down artificial intelligence in its drive-thru lanes, choosing human employee interaction over automated order takers as competitors embrace voice technology. https://t.co/t6wJ0cL9I6
— FOX 9 (@FOX9) October 6, 2026
Cathy reflected on how Chick-fil-A, which has maintained its tradition of closing on Sundays, is seeking to balance innovation with longtime practices centered on customer and employee experience.
“I look at driving this business like driving a race car — there’s a reason that the windshield’s bigger than the rearview mirror,” Cathy said.
“It’s important for the rear view to be grounded on where you are, and there are things that we think about our purpose, our mission, that won’t change, but everything else we have to be able to evolve and change.”
CNBC noted that the American Customer Satisfaction Index has ranked Chick-fil-A as the leader in the fast food industry with respect to customer satisfaction for more than a decade.
Cathy described the approach to technology as “human plus.”
“We think about all these new things into the future, about how will people want to receive food in the future?” he noted.
“As you think about drone delivery and all the other kind of things that could be coming, it’s a fun time in the industry, to think about all the possibilities of what we can do to make a better experience for our guests.”
Other fast food chains are pioneering new AI integrations in their drive-thrus even as Chick-fil-A resists the trend.
McDonald’s launched a technology called ArchIQ to help with drive-thrus, automated inventory tracking, and connected equipment such as computer vision, per a Sept. 25 report from Restaurant Dive.
The company expects ArchIQ to reduce human labor hours and operational complexity, meaning that employees can focus more on customer experience.
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