An AI voice program has been implemented in the drive-thru at the Taco Bell located on 5589 Kanan Road. Hundreds of Taco Bells across the U.S. have enacted Voice AI technology in their drive-thrus, under Yum! Brands, a fast food corporation that has imposed voice AI in their drive thrus.
“We’re expanding and accelerating our AI capabilities like Voice AI to deliver leading-edge technologies to our franchisees and to enhance the consumer and team member experience,” Lawerence Kim, chief innovation officer, Yum! Brands said in a public statement on Tacobell.com in 2024.
Some dislike this use of AI in the Oak Park community.
“I don’t like it because I’d much rather talk to a human,” Oak Park High School senior Mustafa Naqvi said. “And the lady messes up my order sometimes.”
Others don’t necessarily have an aversion to the idea, but instead are startled by the expansion and unfamiliarity of this AI.
“It just really freaked me out,” senior Madeline Leduc said. “I know Wendy’s does it too and has been doing it. It’s just weird.”
Leduc broadened her idea through the lens of a working student.
“I think that a part of customer service is connecting with other people, not so much ‘taking your order, getting your order, bye’ because I work in customer service and that’s what makes a difference in an experience,” Leduc said. “That’s what makes people wanna go back is the social aspect of a lot of places.”
Students aren’t the only ones weighing in on this new technology—teachers are offering their experiences as well.
“It was trying to take my order and I couldn’t find something on the menu so I had to ask for a real person,” history teacher Donald Cook said.
Cook offered his insight about this technology, comparing the situation to historical events.
“It [AI] is going to replace human driven jobs, which bums me out because it’s going to change the economy in the same way the Industrial Revolution did,” Cook said. “It takes generations to recover from that, so young people are going to have to figure out what the recovery looks like, and that’s my biggest fear about AI, the job displacement it’s going to cause.”
On the other hand, Leduc commented regarding the effect AI has and will have on youth in a social aspect.
“I think people are social creatures and, especially since Covid, people are less social,” Leduc said. “Everyone’s digital, on their phone, using AI, going through social media and I think there’s so much more to learn to see to know than just from social media and ChatGPT. I don’t really see community anymore, people are just on their phones, and it’s really sad because we are actively losing that aspect of essential face-to-face communication, and this Taco Bell AI voice is expanding that.”
As controversy around Taco Bell’s Voice AI drive-thru continues to grow in Oak Park, the line between innovation and tradition causes mixed opinions and emotions. While some see it as a tool for efficiency and convenience, others raise concerns about lost human connection and long-term economic effects. The community’s reactions reflect the global debate of artificial intelligence and the extent in which it should be used as it becomes a more visible part of everyday life.
