The AI assistant that makes ordering easier.
McDonald's Appetite Line is an AI-based virtual assistant built on CBOT Platform. Chatting on WhatsApp, customers can place an order from the menu, track its delivery status, find nearby restaurants and see current promotions. When needed, a human agent steps in through CBOT Live Chat to continue the same conversation.
McDonald's wanted to increase sales through its own channels and give customers a more personal, more convenient way to order. Together with CBOT, it built an AI-based ordering system: the "Appetite Line" virtual assistant, backed by CBOT Live Chat.
Appetite Line was built, trained and integrated into McDonald's backend on CBOT Platform. Customers order menus and track delivery status on WhatsApp, while human agents stay in the loop, ready to collaborate with the AI whenever a request goes beyond what the assistant can handle.
A single order request draws on several integrations into McDonald's internal systems, from account and location to restaurant status, product search and payment, so a process that is technically complex stays simple and smooth for the customer.
As a WhatsApp Business Solution Provider, CBOT integrated Appetite Line into WhatsApp and turned it into a notable use case for the platform. CBOT held full responsibility for delivering and maintaining the system.
“McDonald's Appetite Line, the AI-based virtual assistant we built in partnership with CBOT, is a new digital sales channel where our customers can easily order their meals by chatting via WhatsApp. We aim to realize a 4% incremental sales contribution through this channel by the end of 2022 and achieve a more profitable channel mix.”
McDonald's wanted to increase sales volume through its own channels and offer customers a more personal, more convenient ordering experience. As the first AI-based order assistant in the fast-service sector, it was hard to predict how customers would react.
McDonald's wanted to increase sales volume through its own channels.
The goal was to offer customers a more personal, more convenient ordering experience.
As the first AI-based order assistant in the fast-service sector, it was hard to predict how customers would react.
A single order draws on many system integrations; that complexity had to stay invisible to the customer.
CBOT built the Appetite Line virtual assistant on CBOT Platform: an AI-based ordering system, integrated into McDonald's backend and paired with CBOT Live Chat so a human agent can take over any conversation when needed.
Appetite Line was trained on CBOT Platform; customers chat on WhatsApp to order from the menu and track delivery status.
Location, restaurant status, product search, price, order note and payment integrations keep a technically complex flow simple and smooth for the customer.
When a request goes beyond the assistant, an agent takes over through CBOT Live Chat, seeing the history and continuing in the same conversation.
Appetite Line covers ordering from the menu, order tracking, restaurant finding and promotions on WhatsApp; even a single order relies on many integrations into McDonald's backend.
Customers who ordered through Appetite Line for a week or two kept using it; the feared risk did not materialize, and the channel raised interaction frequency and digital customer acquisition.
McDonald's targeted a 4% incremental sales contribution through the channel by the end of 2022, and a more profitable channel mix.
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