San Carlos, Calif. — Presto Automation Inc., the largest drive-thru automation technology provider in the hospitality industry, has formed a collaboration with OpenAI, an AI research and deployment company, to drive greater innovation around its drive-thru AI voice assistant. OpenAI’s
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— By Zayn King-Dollie — Utilizing mobile ordering and building design to capitalize on takeout trends. Last year, The National Restaurant Association estimated that 2022 would have record-breaking sales revenue of $898 billion, a 12.4% increase from
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Aurora, Ill. — Palmer Digital Group, a full-service supplier and installer of custom indoor and outdoor digital kiosks, display enclosures and drive-thru digital menu boards, has been selected by The Patio, a high-end QSR specializing in barbeque, sandwiches and salads,
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— By Jim Metevier — Striking the right balance between dine-in and digital investments. In a world where convenience is king, the quick-service restaurant industry is experiencing an unprecedented push toward digitization, and understandably so. Throughout 2020 and
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Naples, Fla. — LINGA rOS, the all-in-one cloud-based restaurant operating system provider, has appointed Daymion Phelps as its new vice president of sales. She joins LINGA from Heartland Retail. Phelps brings more than 20 years of retail automation solution sales
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— Interview with Eduardo Luz — Panera puts on a show with several new design formats catering to the needs of an increasingly digital and off-premise guest. If variety is the spice of life, the many evolving iterations
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Houston — HungerRush, a leading cloud software provider for the restaurant industry, has expanded its leadership team with the addition of a new chief financial officer (CFO), chief operating officer (COO), vice president of finance and vice president of independent
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Chicago — Chowly, a restaurant technology company that integrates third-party delivery marketplaces with point-of-sale (POS) systems, has acquired Koala, a guest experience platform that empowers established and emerging restaurant brands to elevate their digital ordering experience across web, app and
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San Carlos, Calif. — Presto Automation Inc., the largest drive-thru automation technology provider in the hospitality industry, has been awarded the Supplier of the Year Innovation Award for 2022 by iconic drive-thru restaurant chain Checkers & Rally’s. Presto has been
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San Carlos, Calif. — Presto Automation Inc., the largest drive-thru automation technology provider in the hospitality industry, is expanding its partnership with Del Taco Restaurants, Inc. to provide automated voice ordering at several drive-thru restaurants nationwide. Its artificial intelligence (A.I.)
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London — UK department store Marks & Spencer (M&S) and technology company Zyler have partnered to deliver an in-store virtual try-on experience. M&S enlisted the technology in its Oxford Circus and Harrogate locations, where the feature was trialed with clothing
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Bentonville, Ark. — Walmart’s drone delivery program has successfully completed its intended expansion plans for 2022. The company now operates, with its vendors, 36 drone delivery hubs across seven states, including Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, North Carolina, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
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San Francisco — SpotOn, the top-rated software and payments partner for restaurants and small businesses, has named Bryan Solar as its new chief product officer. Solar joins SpotOn from Block, where he was the general manager for Square for Restaurants.
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Houston — Salata, a leading built-to-order salad kitchen with 90 locations, has named Briton Smetzer as vice president of information technology. With a background in a variety of industries, including fast-casual restaurants, construction, ATM and technology services, Smetzer brings his
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Tel Aviv, Israel, and Munich, Germany — Trigo, an Israel-based computer vision company that builds systems for autonomous checkout and retail analytics, has rolled out Germany’s first fully-autonomous cashierless supermarket in partnership with German grocery giant REWE Group. The new
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Kansas City, Mo. — Service Management Group (SMG), a global customer, employee and brand experience management partner to more than 500 brands, has formed a new partnership with Rubio’s Coastal Grill. The fast-casual restaurant chain specializing in Baja-inspired Mexican food
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Newton, Mass. — Voicify, a conversational AI (Artificial Intelligence) platform used to deliver custom voice assistants, and Paytronix Systems, Inc., the most advanced digital guest experience platform for restaurants and retail, have formed a new partnership that enables restaurants to
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Union, N.J. — Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. has named Scott Lindblom as chief technology & digital officer, effective immediately. Lindblom has served as the company’s chief technology officer since September 2020, and will now be responsible for managing the
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Berlin and New York — ALDI U.S. and Spryker Systems have been working together to develop a new online food & grocery shopping experience for the U.S. market, offering grocery delivery or curbside pickup for ALDI U.S. shoppers. The new
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— By Ashik Ahmed — Scheduling hacks to foster a thriving workplace. Across industries, happy employees are likely to be more productive and yield favorable customer satisfaction rates in return. This is especially true for restaurants and
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Bentonville, Ark., and San Diego — Sam’s Club®, a division of Walmart Inc. and a leading membership warehouse club, has completed a national, chainwide rollout of ‘Inventory Scan’ towers that have been added to its existing fleet of robotic scrubbers
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Dallas — Ziosk®, an industry-leading technology platform that helps restaurants increase operational efficiency and optimize the guest experience, is ushering in a new era of innovation with the appointment of three new executive leadership team members: Eric Neilson, chief technology
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Frederick, Md. — Roy Rogers Restaurants, a western-themed quick-service restaurant chain based in Frederick, Md., has made key investments in remodeling and technology initiatives to drive brand growth with franchise partners. Renovating a collection of restaurants that were built in
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Troy, Ohio — Hobart has introduced the newest edition of HTe Enterprise Asset Scale Management Software. HTe Enterprise is the latest in fleet management and offers several new features. Hobart’s HTe Enterprise improves efficiency, reduces downtime and increases profitability all
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— By Jason Roeder — Advancing restaurant and retail sustainability: the power of equipment data. Last March, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) proposed new rules that will impact every publicly traded multi-unit retailer or restaurant. If the regulations
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Brooklyn, N.Y. — Global design company West Elm, a member of Williams-Sonoma, Inc., the world’s largest digital-first, design-led and sustainable home retailer, has launched its own virtual world, West Elm Home Design, on Roblox, a global platform bringing 52 million
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Los Angeles — chargeFUZE will scale its innovative and autonomous out-of-home mobile phone charging stations into Westfield shopping centers in the U.S. The initiative is part of an effort to ensure that Westfield guests have the best experience possible and
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