McDonald's to use AI for "hotter, fresher food"

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MCDONALD’S TO USE AI FOR FRESH AND CRISPY FRIES 🍟

The best AI news of all time has arrived: McDonald’s is going to use AI to ensure they serve your French fries hot and crispy! 🔥

What’s new? McDonald’s is teaming up with Google to usher in a new era of AI integration in its operations, set to roll out in 2024.

How will AI be used? The partnership aims to bring generative AI to thousands of McDonald’s stores worldwide, promising hardware and software upgrades that extend beyond traditional ordering systems to include kiosks and the mobile app. Along with ordering enhancements for customers, the collaboration envisions leveraging AI on extensive datasets to enhance operational efficiency via “more informed tests and automated solutions” to elevate restaurant operations. Because of this, McDonald’s is boldly claiming an outcome of “hotter, fresher food” for customers. The updated system will also help managers “quickly spot and enact solutions to reduce business disruptions.” Although the specifics of AI utilization remain vague, the implication is clear: increased AI-driven automation at McDonald’s in the foreseeable future.

What about jobs? McDonald’s carefully addressed concerns about job displacement, emphasizing that AI will “reduce complexity” for store crews and introduce “exciting new experiences” for both staff and customers. This move echoes a similar stance from Wendy's, another Google Cloud AI user, which previously ventured into AI-powered ordering tests.

EUROPE ESTABLISHES WORLD’S FIRST AI REGULATIONS 👩‍⚖️

The EU has struck a “deal” with AI … for better or for worse. 🙃

What happened? The European Union has become the world’s first to establish comprehensive regulations for the use of AI.

What are the regulations? Notably, the regulations cover AI models like ChatGPT, requiring transparency obligations, technical documentation, adherence to copyright laws, and dissemination of training content summaries before market release. The legislation also prohibits applications employing cognitive behavioral manipulations and facial recognition databases created from internet or CCTV images. Additionally, it bans systems inferring political, religious, and racial beliefs through social scoring biometric categorization. The law allows exceptions for targeted searches in cases of abduction, trafficking, sexual exploitation, and imminent terrorist threats. Consumers gain the right to file complaints, while violations may incur fines ranging from $8.1 million to $37.7 million euros.

Why does this matter? How to deal with AI from a regulatory standpoint has been a discussion for a long time now, but nothing substantial has come into play until now. Whether these regulations are appropriate or helpful is yet to be seen, but as more countries follow the EU in implementing them, there will no doubt be a shift in AI’s legal landscape.

MUSK’S “GROK” CHATBOT GETS TOO POLITICAL 😵‍💫

AI should stay away from family dinner table discussions! 😅

What’s going on? Elon Musk’s latest venture, the xAI chatbot named Grok, has stirred controversy by seemingly aligning with left-leaning and libertarian views, as revealed by the Political Compass Test.

Some background? The test, assessing economic and social policy preferences, showed striking similarities between Grok and OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Research scientist David Rozado’s X post (above) highlighted these parallels, prompting Musk to acknowledge the issue and pledge immediate action to make Grok more politically neutral.

What will Musk do? Musk criticized the Political Compass Test, citing its lack of nuance and ridiculous questions. Despite his reservations, Musk committed to shifting Grok closer to political neutrality. While Grok is still in beta, Musk expressed confidence in its continual improvement. The incident underscores the challenges of developing politically unbiased AI in an era where ethical concerns and public scrutiny loom large.

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