"Fired for Being Dumb": AI Employee Demands $15,400 for $34 Order at Fast Food Drive-Thru

AI Employee at US Fast Food Drive-Thru
Charges Customer 200,000 Won, Then 20 Million Won
for a 40,000 Won Order

A customer using the drive-thru at a fast food restaurant in the United States experienced a bizarre situation when an artificial intelligence (AI) employee charged them more than 20 million won due to a calculation error.

On August 7 (local time), a truck driver identified as A posted a video on his TikTok channel 'truckerboyju' with the caption, "AI at fast food restaurants is really dumb," showing himself placing an order with an AI employee at the drive-thru of White Castle, a U.S. hamburger franchise.

An AI employee at a fast food restaurant in the United States asked for $15,400 (approximately 21.35 million won) for a 40,000 won order. TikTok capture

In the video, A ordered about $34 (approximately 40,000 won) worth of menu items, including a sausage egg cheese slider, a bacon egg cheese slider, hash browns, and water. However, the AI employee told him to pay $147.6 (about 200,000 won). When A, confused, asked, "Why is it $147?" the AI employee took some time to recalculate and then changed the amount, saying, "Pay $15,400." This is about 21.35 million won, which is more than 500 times the original amount he was supposed to pay.

The video quickly went viral, surpassing 200,000 likes in just one day and receiving over 8,700 comments as of August 10. Most online users responded negatively to the service, saying things like, "This is why I hate AI," "I'm fed up with AI ordering systems," "Because of this technology, fast food workers lost their jobs," "This is why I never use drive-thru locations with AI ordering systems," and "AI will never replace humans."

Meanwhile, White Castle, established in 1921, is a leading fast food restaurant in the United States, known for its signature 'slider burgers,' which are smaller than regular burgers. Since 2023, White Castle has been collaborating with voice recognition company SoundHound to introduce an AI employee named 'Julia,' who communicates with customers and takes food orders. This system is now used in more than 100 drive-thru locations.