Starbucks Deploys AI and AR to Speed Inventory Counts from Hours to Minutes |

Starbucks accelerates his thrust into AI-driven back-of-house technology with the introduction of a new automated inventory system. According to the company, the tool, which already lives at thousands of corporate locations, will be used in all Starbucks-powered shops in North America at the end of September.

The system developed in a partnership with Nomadgo based in Seattle uses handicraft in combination with computer vision, 3D spatial intelligence and augmented reality to scan shelves and immediately identify what is in stock. Low articles are automatically marked, which means that baristas remain before the lack of deficiency. According to Store partners, the inventory counts that it can be completed in a few minutes for about an hour -until 10 to 15 -to count the inventory up to eight times more often than before. According to Starbucks, the technology will also be able to automate recovery orders.

“Starbucks is not about the technology – it is about creating meaningful increases in efficiency, preserving and strengthening the craft and connection,” said Deb Hall Lefevre, Chief Technology Officer of the company. “With automated counting, we offer both a better experience for partners as well as a more consistent and adorable experience for every customer who goes through our doors.”

The effects go beyond the speed. Frequent and more precise counts offer Starbucks almost real-time data impulses that improve the responsiveness of the supply chain, accelerate deliveries and minimize the stocks. According to Lefevre, the modernization provides the prerequisites for more intelligent supply strategies to ensure that the shops remain and that the employees focus more on customers than on clamping boards.

The inventory system has been the third important technology announcement of Starbucks in recent months. In May, the company introduced a Shift Marketplace Tool with which baristas can more easily exchange and manage shifts. In June, Starbucks Green Dot Assist, a generative assistant for AI who was supported to support the business area and a new system of the next Gen POS system in Pilot.

For Starbucks, the introduction of Nomadgo's technology signals a deeper commitment to the use of AI and AR in order to optimize labor -intensive tasks. By automating the back-of-house functions, measurable efficiency gains can be activated on a scale, especially for a brand that operates almost 17,000 shops in North America alone.

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Competitors pursue similar strategies. McDonald's, for example, uses its Edge restaurant platform, a Google cloud platform that now lives in hundreds of US restaurants and is being expanded worldwide. A widely known feature is the AI-driven “accuracy scales”, which rejects outgoing orders and discrepancies in front of the customer. The system is already in thousands of restaurants and was attributed to the accuracy of the order and customer trust. McDonald's has also piloted a geofencing-based function “Ready at arrival”, with which the waiting times can be shortened by more than half.

Chick-Fil-A has now experimented with computer vision to monitor food quality, as well as geofente tools for mobile orders to have the preparation of the kitchen at a better time and to minimize the waiting times. The chain has also invested in automation around its Drive-Thru, which remains the most busy in the industry.

Together, these initiatives indicate a clear trend: the largest quick service brands rely on AI, computer vision and AR, not only to rationalize the customer-oriented speed and personalization, but to rationalize the operational backbone of their companies. For Starbucks, a company that positions its partners and the craft at the center of his brand identity, the goal is to strengthen employees as well as the optimization of efficiency.

“Behind the scenes, these fast, exact and frequent data impulses automate parts of our processes to speed up the deliveries and minimize the stocks,” said Lefevre. “This modernization creates the prerequisites for the more intelligent optimization of the supply chain and the more common inventory filling – everyone should prepare our coffee houses and enable the partners.”

The success of Starbucks's latest AI mission is probably not only measured in saved working hours, but also in fewer confirmations, more consistent gaster experiences and the ability to invest the time of employees in service, and not manual tasks. For an industry in which a missed latte ingredient or a delayed order can undermine trust, the combination of AI, AR and real -time intelligence could prove to be a competitive distinguishing feature in the coming months.