McDonald's Restaurant Drains Customers' Wallets
The fast-food giant McDonald’s is secretly using artificial intelligence (AI) to determine its food prices. This system calculates the maximum amount customers are willing to pay at each location, meaning the same item can vary significantly in price between nearby outlets, according to a report by Futurism, Monday (5/10/2026).
Based on an investigation by Reuters, the algorithm used analyses millions of transactions daily to generate prices deemed most profitable for the company. As a result, price differences have become very striking. At one location in Fresno, California, a Big Mac meal was sold for US$5.69. In another location just three kilometres away, the same food was sold for US’6.89, a 21 per cent increase.
McDonald’s stated that this price recommendation tool is merely a guide, not a mandatory command. However, several franchisees claim they are actually under pressure to follow the system’s suggestions. Head office monitors those who do not follow the recommended pricing, and non-compliance is one of the factors assessed when reviewing their partnership.
Head office revenue is derived from a percentage of sales, rather than profit. This means that the higher the sales price, the more money flows into the head office, even if the individual restaurant owners do not necessarily see higher profits. Some franchisees are concerned because the system occasionally suggests price reductions that result in losses for them.
The system’s mechanism was developed in collaboration with the data analytics firm Tiger Analytics. The company instructed the AI to raise prices on food items that had not seen an increase in the last two years. Consequently, whenever an opportunity arises, prices are adjusted upwards as far as the market is still able to bear.
Dynamic pricing practices have previously been used by other companies, such as Instacart, but were discontinued following widespread public protest. Such systems are estimated to be able to increase the average family’s expenditure by up to US$1,200 per year on daily essentials alone.
This means that the price you see on the menu board is no longer merely the cost of ingredients plus a reasonable profit. It is a figure continuously calculated by a machine, searching for the highest limit you are still willing to pay before switching to another establishment. This could just be the beginning; if successful, similar methods could spread everywhere, including McDonald’s in Indonesia.