Automation is a great thing for society and wealth creation if we’re able to figure out the new normal politically, which we seem unable to do presently. I mean, we can laugh (for now) at the redundancies when a McDonald’s test restaurant duplicates service with both computer tablets and humans taking orders, but it’s obvious which of those servers will soon be eliminated. From Will Oremus at Slate:
“Score one for the machines. On Tuesday, Applebee’s announced plans to install a tablet at every table in its 1,860 restaurants across the United States. Customers will be able to use the devices to order food, pay the bill, and ignore their dining companions by playing video games.
Chili’s unveiled basically the same plan three months ago. But that doesn’t mean Applebee’s hasn’t been plotting this move for years. In fact, Applebee’s was the name that came up when my former Slate colleague Annie Lowrey first wrote about the tablets-for-restaurants idea in April 2011. Her story focused on Palo Alto-based startup E La Carte, which is in fact Applebee’s partner on the just-announced deal. Chili’s opted for a rival vendor, Ziosk.”
Tags: Will Oremus