Chick-fil-A’s Red Wagon Ventures Tests Tech-Infused Beverage Concept with Daybright |

Chick-fil-A's innovation arm, Red Wagon Ventures, has quietly launched a new, beverage-focused restaurant concept called ” daylightdesigned as a consumer test and potential proving ground for next-generation operational technology. The first location opened October 30 in Hiram, Georgia, and features a double drive-thru and compact dining room.

Daybright's menu focuses on specialty coffees and teas, as well as a small selection of locally made baked goods and prepared foods. The brand's website emphasizes that food and drinks are “prepared, baked or cooked in the restaurant using real ingredients,” highlighting the focus on freshness and craftsmanship rather than mass production. But behind this handcrafted positioning, the concept likely also serves as a testing lab for Chick-fil-A's evolving operational and digital capabilities.

While the company hasn't detailed its technology stack, several design clues suggest Daybright is integrating or experimenting with systems that could shape Chick-fil-A's future service models. The Dual Drive-Thru, for example, can use data-driven lane balancing and sequence timing algorithms similar to those used in Chick-fil-A's latest prototypes. These systems link order entries from mobile, kiosk and voice channels with kitchen display networks to ensure synchronized preparation and pickup.

Daybright's smaller footprint and beverage-focused menu also make it an ideal environment for testing mobile-first guest journeys. The unit could experiment with Chick-fil-A's growing loyalty and ordering platforms, allowing the company to track how customization, beverage throughput and digital ordering behavior differ from traditional, grocery-heavy stores. The company's mobile app already integrates predictive ordering and guest personalization features – tools that translate seamlessly into a faster, beverage-centric format.

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Operationally, Daybright could also serve as a sandbox for workflow automation and energy-efficient kitchen systems. Chick-fil-A has invested heavily in smart kitchen technology, and Red Wagon Ventures often tests modular layouts and appliance integrations before rolling them out systemwide. A smaller format allows for more rigorous testing of new hardware such as automated brewing systems, connected inventory sensors or AI-powered quality inspections without impacting overall operations.

The launch comes amid intense competition in the beverage space, where technology-enabled speed and consistency are increasingly driving brand differentiation. Chains like Dutch Bros, 7 Brew and Black Rifle Coffee Company have used app-driven loyalty systems and digital drive-thru logistics to expand quickly. Meanwhile, Taco Bell, KFC and McDonald's are experimenting with beverage-focused or automation-driven prototypes to grab share in the high-margin category.

For Chick-fil-A, Daybright appears to be less about competing directly with established coffee brands and more about refining the systems and tools that could impact the broader business. By combining artisanal preparation with digitally optimized service flow, the company is exploring how to maintain hospitality while increasing speed and accuracy – an increasingly difficult balance in the quick-service industry.

If successful, the insights gained from Daybright could inform how Chick-fil-A approaches future remodels, kitchen automation and data-driven decision-making at its core restaurants. In this sense, Daybright functions not just as a coffeehouse, but as a live operations laboratory testing how technology and human service can coexist in the next generation of restaurant design.