Yum China, operator of KFC and Pizza Hut in the Chinese market, has announced the pilot launch of an AI assistant for restaurant managers to help them perform day-to-day tasks more efficiently.

The program, named Q-Smart, is designed to assist frontline managers in labor scheduling, inventory management, and food quality and safety inspection by providing intelligent support for decision-making.

Q-Smart allows managers to interact with the system hands-free using wearable devices such as wireless earphones and smart watches. It uses natural language and can understand and respond to managers’ voice commands, offering a further boost in operational efficiency. 

Drawing from Yum China’s knowledge base, the system can provide real-time support and solutions for managers to effectively handle urgent operational issues. 

“Q-Smart is not just an AI tool – it is a potential game-changer for how restaurants can be managed,” said Leila Zhang, chief technology officer at Yum China.

“We believe that Q-Smart will not only help Yum China improve its operational efficiency, but can also serve as an example for the digital transformation and smart development of the catering industry.”

The company is piloting the AI assistant at select KFC stores to prepare for  a larger-scale rollout in the future.

Yum China operates more than 16,000 restaurants under six brands across over 2300 cities in China, with KFC and Pizza Hut considered the company’s leading franchises.