When customers pull into a Starbucks drive-thru or step inside one of its cafés, the experience can feel reassuringly familiar. Yet behind the scenes, artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role in how the global coffee chain operates.
Starbucks’ recent investments in AI highlight a broader shift across consumer-facing businesses: technology is no longer just about efficiency. Used well, AI is becoming a strategic tool for improving customer experience, supporting staff and driving sustainable growth.
What the Starbucks Example Shows Us
The Starbucks experience illustrates how AI can be deployed across the full customer journey. At the front end, AI tools can reduce friction by speeding up ordering and improving accuracy. Behind the scenes, automated systems take on repetitive tasks, such as scheduling and inventory management, allowing employees to focus on customer service.
The technology forms part of a wider programme of significant investment, as the long-established coffee chain seeks to re-engage customers following a prolonged period of weaker sales.
Crucially, the technology is not being positioned as a replacement for people. Instead, it is used to support staff and protect the brand’s emphasis on human connection and consistency at scale.
From One Brand to a Wider Business Trend
What Starbucks is doing reflects a much broader trend across industries. Retailers, hospitality groups and service providers are increasingly adopting AI to manage costs, improve reliability and respond to changing consumer expectations.
AI is now being used to:
· streamline customer interactions
· support employees with real-time information
· automate operational and administrative tasks
· improve decision-making using data and predictive tools
For many organisations, AI has become central to growth strategies rather than a standalone technology project.
The Growing Need for AI Governance
As AI becomes embedded in everyday operations, it also introduces new legal, regulatory and ethical considerations. Businesses must be able to explain how AI systems operate, how decisions are made and how data is handled.
Clear AI policies and governance frameworks help organisations manage risk, ensure compliance and build confidence among employees, customers and regulators. Without them, even well-intended AI initiatives can create significant exposure.
Berry Smith’s Bottom Line
Berry Smith works with businesses that are adopting AI across their operations, from customer-facing tools to internal systems.
Our AI services include:
· developing and implementing AI policies
· advising on governance, risk and accountability
· advising on responsible AI use
· aligning AI adoption with employment, data protection and regulatory obligations
We help organisations ensure that innovation is matched with oversight and control.
The Starbucks example shows how AI can be used to enhance operations while preserving the human experience that customers value. For businesses more broadly, the challenge is not whether to use AI, but how to use it well.
With the right strategy, governance and legal framework in place, AI can support growth, efficiency and trust in equal measure.
If you have any questions on AI you can contact us on 02920 345511 or at commercial@berrysmith.com.