McDonald’s has been using artificial intelligence to dynamically price menu items in the US and some global markets, according to a report by Reuters. This involves finding the “optimal price” to match what a particular store’s patrons would be willing to pay.
This fluctuates according to location, and even stores in the same city can have different cost amounts for the same exact items, according to information reviewed by Reuters. This is basically surge pricing, like with ride-share platforms, but for hockey puck burgers that have been sitting under a hot lamp.
Reuters got a look at the interface that franchisees use to access this technology and it’s pretty creepy. Messages show stuff like “your restaurant is showing MEDIUM SENSITIVITY to price” based on “customer willingness to pay in your area.” Cost differences at nearby locations can be stark. Researchers found that a Bic Mac at a Fresno, California store cost $5.69, but the same burger cost $6.89 at another branch two miles down the road. That’s a 21 percent difference.
That’s not necessarily true. It’s ridiculously easy to find, especially in this example. Simply change your pickup address to the house next door.
People are much more perceptive about this activity than you give them credit for, and in fact, there’s a whole sub-genre of content creator that focuses on it. There are also leakers. That documentation will find its way to local authorities and become actionable when the amount of it passes a certain threshold, not unlike the number of dead kids translating to FB having to go to court.
Do you think that fools Uber into believing that the user using the same mobile-computer, the same account, the same data-connection and within the same travel patterns is now a completely different person?
It’s immaterial. Surveillance pricing algorithms aren’t without their flaws, and in this case, it’s relying too heavily on established patterns.