McDonald's Bets $8.5B on Revamped Restaurants and AI
McDonald's has launched a multi-billion dollar effort to regain its lost market share. The company's long-term growth plan, called McDonald's > NEXT, involves investing up to $8.5 billion through 2036 in restaurant renovations and technology upgrades.
The majority of the investment will be directed towards modernizing restaurants, with each franchisee required to renovate every ten years at a cost of around $400,000 to $450,000 per restaurant.
McDonald's is also introducing hand-battered fried chicken in more U.S. and Ireland locations next year, targeting 1.5 percentage points of market share growth in both the chicken and beverage categories.
The company has partnered with Google to deploy an AI system called ArchIQ, which will transform kitchen operations and drive-thru service.