Starbucks is expanding its use of artificial intelligence in its US coffee shops. In some locations, an AI assistant takes orders, and baristas use a digital assistant for recipes and schedules.
Some tools automatically track inventory. The company hopes this will help reduce out-of-stock issues for popular items that have previously been regularly removed from the menu, causing customer dissatisfaction.
The technologies are part of a massive investment worth hundreds of millions of dollars that Starbucks is making amid several years of weak sales. The first results are already visible: last week, the company reported its first increase in US sales in two years at its established chain. The US market remains a key market for Starbucks, accounting for about 70% of its total revenue.
Meanwhile, the company’s shares fell 5%. Investors are concerned that significant spending, including about $500 million in staffing increases, has hurt profitability.
The company has also cut thousands of corporate jobs, closed unprofitable coffee shops, and sold a significant portion of its China business.
CEO Brian Niccol, who took over in 2024, has acknowledged that Starbucks has become too obsessed with efficiency and digital metrics, losing focus on the customer experience and the coffee shop’s role as a social space.