Starbucks keeps telling us it is getting back to human connection. Apparently, that future also involves artificial intelligence helping process your drive-thru order, personalized digital menus, and potentially an AI agent handling your coffee purchase.
During its latest earnings call, Starbucks outlined technology plans that could change how customers order and how employees work. Some sound useful, but the company has plenty to explain before I would call this a better coffee experience.
In its fourth-quarter earnings call, CEO Brian Niccol said Starbucks will begin testing AI assistance at the drive-thru during fiscal 2027. The proposed system would operate in the background while baristas interact with customers.
“In fiscal 2027, we’ll begin testing background AI models in the drive-thru that help our baristas input orders more accurately and efficiently as they interact with customers,” Niccol said. Starbucks says the goal is to give employees more opportunity to connect with customers while improving service speed.
To be clear, this is not an announcement that a chatbot will replace the person taking your order. Starbucks described AI supporting that employee, and there is a reasonable argument for technology that reduces the amount of time someone spends tapping through a checkout screen.
Will the system process customer audio? Will anything be retained, and will customers have an easy way to decline? The earnings call did not answer those questions, leaving a pretty large gap between the friendly sales pitch and the information people need to evaluate it.
The company is also exploring experiences that recognize participating customers when they arrive, display personalized digital menus, and make payment easier. That could be convenient for someone who orders the same drink every morning, but Starbucks has not explained how the recognition would work.
There is no basis in this transcript to call it facial recognition. The company did not identify the technology, describe the data involved, or explain what participation would require. Those are exactly the details Starbucks should provide before asking customers to embrace the idea.
The app is getting attention too. Starbucks is working on AI-powered search and discovery, with conversational ordering and agentic ordering identified as potential capabilities over time.
In plain English, that could mean describing a drink to an AI system or allowing an AI assistant to help place an order. Starbucks is also exploring mobile ordering from cars and through emerging AI platforms, although it did not name partners or announce a launch date for those possibilities.
I can see the appeal of making a complicated order easier. However, ordering a coffee should not require wondering whether an assistant understood your customization, selected the correct location, or committed you to a purchase before you were ready.
Personalized recommendations deserve scrutiny as well. A suggestion that helps you find something you like can be useful, but customers should be able to understand when the system is steering them toward extras that increase the bill.
That commercial incentive is hardly hidden. Starbucks executives discussed increasing food purchases alongside beverages, selling merchandise, and using personalization to encourage more spending. The company reported 36 million active Starbucks Rewards members over a 90-day period, giving its digital strategy a substantial audience.
There are more straightforward changes coming, too. Starbucks plans to begin integrating delivery directly into its app in fiscal Q2, alongside extending the ability to earn and redeem Stars on delivery orders. New staffing, scheduling, and point-of-sale systems are also planned throughout fiscal 2027.
Those employee tools could make a practical difference if they reduce busywork and help stores run properly. Better technology does not automatically make a business less human, especially when it gives workers more time and support.
But Starbucks is selling these changes alongside a promise to restore the coffeehouse experience. Niccol repeatedly emphasized comfortable spaces, better service, and personal connection, making it fair to ask how much additional software customers actually need between themselves and a barista.
I do enjoy the occasional Starbucks drink, especially a hot Pumpkin Spice Latte, but the pricing is wild. A couple of those drinks can cost me around $15. At that price, I expect good service and an experience that feels worth paying for.
For now, Starbucks is describing AI assistance rather than announcing the removal of baristas. But if the company gradually removes humans from the experience without lowering prices, I will probably stop going. There is only so much I am willing to pay for a coffee run that starts feeling like another self-service transaction.
If AI helps employees get orders right and makes their jobs easier, great. But if Starbucks expects customers to accept less personal service while paying the same premium prices, it should not be surprised when some of us decide to make coffee at home.
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