How CaliBurger's Bringing AI Into the Ordering Experience

CaliBurger is embracing the future with AI-enabled self-ordering kiosks powered by NEC’s NeoFace® facial recognition software.

The CaliGroup restaurant operating division is using the smart kiosks to identify registered customers and pull up their loyalty accounts and order preferences. The kiosk pilot program is now at CaliBurger's Pasadena location, where the QSR chain showcases new technologies developed by its parent company. If customers are pleased with the new ordering experience, the kiosks will be rolled out to CaliBurger's global locations next year. Also in 2018, the platform will enable customers to pay using their faces.  

As shown in the demo video below, customers will have the option of immediately activating their loyalty accounts as they approach the kiosks without needing to swipe a card or type in identifying information. The loyalty account displays a customer's favorite meal packages, based on order history, enabling the customer to complete the transaction in a matter of seconds.

"Face-based loyalty significantly reduces the friction associated with loyalty program registration and use; further, it enables a restaurant chain like CaliBurger to provide a customized, one-on-one interactive experience at the ordering kiosk," said John Miller, chairman and CEO of Cali Group.  "Our goal for 2018 is to replace credit card swipes with face-based payments. Facial recognition is part of our broader strategy to enable the restaurant and retail industries to provide the same kinds of benefits and conveniences in the built world that customers experience with retailers like Amazon in the digital world."

In addition to using facial recognition to enhance and improve the customer experience in restaurants, Cali Group is pioneering: AI and robotics to automate kitchen equipment and monitor the dining area; social gaming for entertainment in the dining area; and infrastructure for autonomous vehicles to deliver fresh food.   

Cali Group worked with NEC to integrate the tech firm’s facial recognition technology into its loyalty program.  In 2017, the U.S. National Institute of Standards and Technology ranked NEC's platform the most accurate in the world for one-to-many searching.