McDonald’s outlined a plan to win back diners with hand-breaded chicken, AI-driven kitchens and drive-throughs, and smaller PlayPlaces. It expects to expand its US chicken pilot in early 2027 and invest $8.5 billion through 2036 for restaurant tech, rent relief and capital.
The plan follows Q2 US same-store sales growth of 0.8%, against Burger King’s 8.5%. McDonald’s shares fell 5% Wednesday and were down 18% year to date; shares of Burger King parent Restaurant Brands International were up 4.6%. McDonald’s plans to deliver about $5 billion of its investment by 2030. Full adoption of NEXT would cost franchisees an additional $800,000 per restaurant. One operator said high ingredient, labor and rent costs, alongside high interest rates, make another redesign difficult; rollout can be phased.
McDonald’s targets a 1.5% market-share gain, with chicken and beverages, including crafted sodas, leading the effort. Global restaurant chief Jacques Mignault said the hand-breaded chicken was beating competitors on taste and quality in Asian markets; McDonald’s has also started testing bone-in wings. The company says AI will contribute to part of a planned 250-basis-point improvement in gross restaurant-level efficiency, which it equates to roughly $100,000 in annual cash flow for an average US restaurant. It expects drive-through AI to save more than 50 labor hours per week.
