Burger King fans may soon be celebrating the improvements made to the Whopper with the restaurant company making changes for the first time in around 10 years. The restaurant company is also adding new artificial intelligence tools to improve restaurant operations and customer service, items that could help sales and the stock of parent company Restaurant Brands International (NYSE:QSR).
Burger King Testing AI For Restaurants
Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International beat analyst estimates for the fourth quarter. With a goal of continuing to beat analyst expectations and fight off growing competition in the restaurant sector, Burger King could have its sights set on utilizing AI to improve things.
The company is testing an AI system powered by OpenAI at 500 U.S. restaurants. The system called "Patty" can help recall recipes, tell managers when inventory is low on items and if bathrooms need attention, as reported by the New York Post.
These items can be communicated through employee headsets and utilize the power of OpenAI and can help improve customer relations by removing items from menus if the store doesn't have the ingredients available.
Along with helping employees and managers with voice commands, the "Patty" system is also being used by Burger King to improve customer service through tracking of employees.
According to the report, the AI system can track how often employees are using the words "please," "thank you" and "welcome" to customers and each other. That data can be shared with managers for feedback and training.
The company said it's not using the AI tool as a tracker, but instead as a way to coach employees and improve customer relations.
"It's not about scoring individuals or enforcing scripts. It's about reinforcing great hospitality and giving managers helpful, real-time insights so they can recognize their teams more effectively," a statement from Burger King said, as reported by the New York Post.
"We believe hospitality is fundamentally human. The role of this technology is to support our teams so they can stay present with guests."
The "Patty" system could be rolled out to all U.S. Burger King locations later this year.
News of the new AI system comes as Burger King unveiled plans to update its Whopper Thursday based on guest feedback. Among the changes made are a more premium, better-tasting bun, better-tasting mayo and being served in a box.
Restaurant Turning to AI Tools
Restaurants have been turning to increased tests and partnerships with AI companies for tools and platforms to help with operations and customer service.
The New York Post report named Yum Brands (NYSE:YUM), parent company of Taco Bell, KFC and Taco Bell, as one of the larger restaurants working with AI Tools, with the company partnering with NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA).
McDonald's (NYSE:MCD) previously worked on an automated order partnership with IBM (NYSE:IBM) in 2024 and has since turned to a partnership with Alphabet (NASDAQ:GOOGL) for AI tools.
Benzinga shared last year that Dine Brands Global (NYSE:DIN) was working on AI tools built by Amazon.com Inc (NASDAQ:AMZN), while others like McDonald's and Yum Brands were also exploring AI technology inside restaurants.
SoundHound AI (NASDAQ:SOUN) said during recent quarterly results that it was working with restaurant brands including Panda Express, IHOP and Jersey Mike's on AI tools for drive-thru and phone ordering.
AI is becoming increasingly popular and practical for restaurant companies to use to improve restaurant and customer processes. The question is if Burger King's new AI and employee training tool on manners could help boost overall sales.
Restaurant Brands International Stock Price Action
Restaurant Brands stock was up 2.6% to $71.71 on Friday versus a 52-week trading range of $58.71 to $73.70. Shares are up 5.3% year-to-date in 2026 and up 9.6% over the last year.
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