Dairy Queen rolls out voice AI at dozens of drive-thrus across the US and Canada

Dairy Queen fast-food chain on April 16, 2026 announced the launch of a voice AI assistant from Presto Automation in dozens of drive-thrus across the USA and Canada — the bot will take some orders in place of live employees.

Why the chain needs a voice bot

Speed up service and increase the average check — this is how, according to The Wall Street Journal, the goal of implementation is described. The voice assistant responds to the customer at the order window instead of a live employee or alongside one, taking the order and suggesting something to add to it.

"Persuade customers to add something else to their order" — according to

The Wall Street Journal, this is how one of the tasks of the voice assistant is described.

The Wall Street Journal titled its article with a warning: next time you order a Blizzard at Dairy Queen, the customer risks talking to an AI, not a human.

• April 16, 2026 — Dairy Queen and Presto Automation announced the partnership through a press release on Businesswire
• Dairy Queen tested the technology in 2025; now the bot is being launched widely — in dozens of locations across the USA and Canada
• Presto already supplies voice AI to the chains Carl's Jr., Hardee's, Taco John's and Fazoli's
• In 2023, Bloomberg reported that Presto's voice assistants in drive-thrus were actually backed by live operators from the Philippines — The Verge wrote about this on December 8, 2023

Who is Presto and what about the live people

Presto Automation is not a newcomer to the voice AI market for fast food: in addition to Dairy Queen, the company already works with chains Carl's Jr., Hardee's, Taco John's and Fazoli's, so the launch at Dairy Queen is an expansion of an already established partnership, not an experiment from scratch. Presto's reputation, however, is mixed: in 2023, Bloomberg found that some "AI" orders in drive-thrus were actually processed by live operators, remotely working from the Philippines — The Verge wrote about this on December 8, 2023.

Companies typically do not publicize such details. In The Verge's coverage of the Dairy Queen launch, the publication separately reminds readers of this history — the question of who actually stands behind the Presto bot's voice in each specific restaurant remains open.

What this means

Voice AI in drive-thrus is ceasing to be an experiment of individual chains and is becoming a standard option for major fast-food brands — the question is how much of such systems is real AI and how much is hidden human labor behind the scenes.

Frequently asked questions

What other fast-food chains does Presto work with?

Besides Dairy Queen, Presto's voice AI is used by the chains Carl's Jr., Hardee's, Taco John's and Fazoli's — so Dairy Queen joins an already active list of the company's clients.

Is it true that real people are behind Presto AI bots?

In 2023, Bloomberg reported that Presto's voice assistants in drive-thrus were sometimes backed by live operators working from the Philippines — The Verge wrote about this on December 8, 2023. There are no official denials of this story in the public domain.