Early last month, I visited my mother in Central New York. Typically, when we visit, we stay in a hotel. Since I was traveling alone this time, I elected to stay with her in the ancestral home. Now, I love my mom, but… she drinks instant coffee. So, I found myself driving into town every morning in search of something brewed.
The closest and easiest source of coffee was the McDonalds a few miles down the road, just off the interstate. It’s been years since I’ve set foot in a fast food restaurant, and I was surprised to be greeted by a giant self-serve kiosk instead of a human. Yes, I realize that I’m behind the times. I’ve since learned that McDonalds began implementing this self-service plan in 2015, which, admittedly, is probably around the last time I frequented one of their establishments.
Still, I found myself somewhat annoyed, and then disillusioned. Over the course of the four mornings I went there, the only human I saw was a young woman who I assume was the manager. She brought out my cup, called my number, and wished me a good day. I’m sure there were other people in back, but how many, or what they were doing, remains unknown. I don’t know how much of the rest of the operation was being automated.
The McDonalds corporation claims they put in the kiosks for ‘customer convenience.’ What I saw wasn’t convenience, it was lost opportunity.
I grew up in that same small town in the 70s, where opportunities for young people were limited. This was long before McDonalds arrived in town. Some of my friends were fortunate to get work at the local supermarket. I spent many years doing yard work, and mostly farm work; bailing hay, painting barns, and cleaning horse stalls.
So, when I stepped into that restaurant, what I saw was some kid who wasn’t going to get a job, because it was already taken by a computer. Perhaps I’m more sensitive to this type of thing now, given our current economic environment. And I know some will argue that this is indicative of corporate greed, and some will argue that this is the logical consequence of government interference over the minimum wage. Either way, the ‘robots’ are working and people aren’t.
Back in Albuquerque, at least one local restaurant has implemented the use of robot servers. This isn’t fast food, it’s ‘fine dining’ – a lovely restaurant on the west side of town, situated on a hill that provides a stunning view of Sandia. My wife and I have dined there and had an enjoyable experience. The announcement that they were staffing with robots came a few months ago. The purported intent was for the robots to bring your food to the table, after your order has been taken by a server.
The reaction on the Albuquerque Foodies Facebook page was mixed. Several patrons noted that after witnessing the robots wander aimlessly about while the food got cold, they’d never go back. Some stated that they’d never go back just out of principle. Still others said they couldn’t wait to see the ‘cute robots,’ and the price was right, so who cares anyway? And one prevailing sentiment was, ‘if it helps efficiency and improves customer service, why not?’
Here’s what I see; the normalization of replacing people with machines. It may be low level now, impacting cashiers, servers, bussers, food runners, etc. Perhaps it just might help efficiency and improve customer service, but at what cost? And how are you going to feel when it’s your position that’s sacrificed on the altar of efficiency and low cost?
Of course, it’s already happening. According to a recent MIT study, 95% of companies who have implemented AI into their business have seen zero return on their investments. That’s not stopping them from laying off employees by the thousands, though. Customer service roles are the most visible, but it’s impacting other sectors, such as legal, finance, and software development. Last Tuesday, during their earnings call, HP announced their intent to eliminate 4,000-6,000 jobs due to AI. HP is just the latest joining IBM, Amazon, Salesforce, Duolingo, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and others.
That robot bringing you your schnitzel might be cute now, but it’s probably coming for your job next.
Last evening I watched a video from a young YouTuber who was traveling within the United States. He arrived late at a hotel, and was greeted at the front desk by… a self-serve kiosk. It connected him with a customer service representative in India, who helped walk him through the check-in process.
The restaurant and hotel industries survive off discretionary and business spending. Their attempts to introduce automation into their customer service experience may be helping their bottom line, but it’s also normalizing the process of replacing humans with something not human. That may be great for them now, but what happens when huge swaths of the workforce are replaced with automation? If no one has a job, there’s no discretionary spending, and no customers. Are they planning to rely solely on tech bros as their future customer base?
Speaking of tech bros, I listened to an interview this morning with the CEO of Google. When asked about the societal harm of millions of people potentially losing their jobs to AI, he responded with a story about his mother getting a dishwasher, and how it freed her up to do other things.
With all due respect to someone who is obviously much more intelligent, and much wealthier, than I am… that’s quite possibly the most ignorant response I’ve heard yet. We’re not talking about household appliances freeing you up so you can spend more time folding laundry. We’re talking about the loss of livelihood. The loss of purpose.
All of this leads me to one question (well, actually, it leads me to a lot of questions, but for now…) – why do we keep giving these people our money? Why do we prop up businesses with our hard-earned dollars so they can develop better ways to get rid of us?
As a footnote; this morning I read a report from the Senate Department of Government Efficiency Caucus that detailed how SNAP benefits were being used in certain states to purchase meals at fast food restaurants. Over the last two years (from June 2023 through May 2025), $524M were spent on fast food using food stamps. The bulk of those expenditures, 90% or $475M, were in California. Taxpayer funds are being given to people to spend at corporations who have no interest in giving those people a job, but are only too happy to take your tax money. We’re literally subsidizing businesses to not provide job opportunities.
My question still stands. Why are we giving these corporations our money?
And… this morning I went to Costco and the entire food court staff had been replaced with computer screens. Not kidding.
P.A. Tennant – November, 2025
Soli Deo Gloria
Photo: P.A. Tennant
Copyright 2025 Paul A. Tennant
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