Visualize a universe in which ordering a favorite pizza is as easy as having the AI assistant predict cravings before they even wander into the customer’s mind. With assistance from AI, Papa Johns is trying to bring that vision closer to reality. The pizza giant is teaming up with Google Cloud to redefine customer experience by making the order process more personalized, more efficient, and seamlessly integrated into everyday life.

Papa John’s International is now incorporating artificial intelligence to enhance the customer pizza ordering channels through an expansive partnership with Google Cloud. Announced on Thursday, the move intends to personalize customer interaction, optimize marketing purposes, and streamline operations that would ultimately drive sales and efficiency.

AI-Powered Personalization and Ordering

Papa Johns is embracing AI to create a better customer experience. The company is interested in personalizing push notifications, marketing emails, and loyalty programs, so it intends to use AI to evaluate prior customer behavior and certain contextual factors. AI will also power online chatbots and virtual assistants, making the ordering of favorite meals seamless for customers.

This is in keeping with a more general emerging trend within the fast food sector in which companies enlist AI support to speed up their service and engage with customers. Kevin Vasconi, Papa John’s chief digital officer said,

“The advances in technology are allowing us to do things that we couldn’t do three or four years ago. Some of it is around scalability, some of it is around security, some of it is, quite honestly, around cost.”

The AI Race

While major chains in the restaurant industry have practically incorporated AI for performance analysis and sales, Papa Johns admits that it has been lagging behind in the race. However, Todd Penegor, the CEO who was hired just a year ago, hopes this can be a very good platform for coming back to the much needed tech glory. Todd Penegor said,

“We’ve fallen behind in many respects, but there’s a big opportunity to catch up fast and reclaim some of our tech leadership.”

The online ordering was conceptualized back in 2001, and Penegor is determined to bring the company back on its innovative digital map. Penegor, who was the CEO of Wendy’s, also led an identical AI partnership with Google Cloud to modernize drive-throughs as well. At Papa Johns, he snagged  Kevin Vasconi, a former colleague at Wendy’s, who was also a big player in the Domino’s Pizza’s digital transformation from 2012 to 2020.

Future AI Integrations

Papa John’s has turned its gaze to the future and plans to enhance its AI applications beyond customer interactions further. The upcoming AI programs will assist with deliveries and route-planning, store inventory management, and enhance in-store operations, contributing to improved efficiencies all over the business. The rapid evolution of AI within the fast-food industry has ushered in technological transformation efforts by Papa John’s that mark a very significant shift in strategy. This AI intervention is meant to enhance customer convenience, make things operationally efficient, and help Papa John’s regain its digital innovation leadership.