Post-it Brainstorming: (Normal towards left top, Craziest towards right bottom, first top>bottom, then left>right)
Transcript:
Row 1, Left to right: Universal online ordering app, fast food subscription service, kiosks replace all cashiers, in-office work delivery collab/partnership, pre-packaged grab and go meals, smart fridges which automatically reorder refills
Row 2, Left to right: Smart vending machines with hot meals, robot dogs for delivery, fast food assembly lines of robots, dna-based meal prep and customization, AI-prediction ordering system, hyperloop-like delivery tubes
Item 1: Universal Online Ordering App
Ordering online from a fast food restaurant is already an option for many. However, many choose not to do it because it is inconvenient. Often times, the fast food restaurant forces the user to download their app, which may take a few minutes. Then, it forces the user to make an account, and with a verification code/email, it is too much of a hassle for a customer to do. A Universal Online Ordering App would be like an online maps app, but it includes a convenient way for people to order. Once someone selects a nearby restaurant from the home screen, they get brought to the restaurant’s menu, which they can easily order from. After ordering, they will receive an estimated wait time for their food and an order number. This is like a universal fast food app, which a user only has to download once.
Item 2: AI-prediction Ordering System
Instead of only eliminating the waiting in line part, the AI-prediction Ordering System can eliminate users having to choose an order as well. The AI system would be an app or a function installed on one’s phone, having connections to all apps, locations, card history, and more. The AI system will track all purchases a user makes. Once a user goes to a fast-food restaurant multiple times, the AI will remember the user’s orders and give the user the option to choose from the top three most popular orders that the user has made, to order ahead. This can also be more convenient, by having the selection pop up on the user’s notifications once the user has arrived at a fast-food restaurant. This will work not only in fast food, but in grocery stores, and more, eliminating the user’s wait time by eliminating the line, and the time they take to consider what products and foods they want to buy.
Item 3: Smart Vending Machine with Hot Meals
In many current fast food restaurants, there are kiosks which the user can order from, eliminating the friction they need to face when ordering from the cashier. Each vending machine would be placed next to the actual fast-food restaurant itself, in areas mainly like malls and shopping centers. In these vending machines, the selection will have to be very limited, to only two or three of the most popular items, with no customizability, because it is simply impossible to stock many options. These vending machines would have to be placed next to the restaurant because it needs to be restocked every 40 minutes to an hour. This will both reduce the lines in the main restaurant, allowing for less employees, and create a faster method to ordering. Ordering ahead with these vending machines will also be an available option.