AI Is Changing How Restaurants Are Run
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Adam Brotman and Andy Sack weren't planning to write a book about AI.
At first, Harvard approached them about customer loyalty, a subject they knew well. Brotman had spent years leading digital strategy at Starbucks, helping build the company's world-class mobile app. Sack was a longtime technologist and venture capitalist who co-founded Forum3, a digital strategy firm, alongside Brotman.
Then ChatGPT arrived on the scene, and everything changed.
"We had this moment," Sack says to Shawn Walchef of Cali BBQ Media, "where we looked at each other and said: this is going to be way bigger than anyone realizes."
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In that instant, the book they thought they'd be writing—the safe one about digital loyalty—became something else entirely. They were now on a mission to unpack AI: what it meant for business, creativity, and the entire landscape of work.
That kicked off a journey that resulted in AI First: The Playbook for a Future-Proof Business and Brand.
Their research involved interviewing some of the most powerful minds in tech: Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI; Reid Hoffman, the co-founder of LinkedIn and OpenAI; and Bill Gates.
They weren't easy interviews to get.
When they met with Hoffman, he was late. He'd just finished a call with the Pope. That's how powerful technology companies have become.
He was working with the Vatican to help them understand the societal impact of AI. What caught the Pope's attention was the idea that a device powered by AI could provide healthcare guidance on par with a primary care physician. At scale. For the entire world.
Bill Gates put his feelings simply: "AI is bigger than the computer." When asked why, he explained, "This time, the computer understands us."
Sam Altman didn't hold back when asked how AI would impact marketing and creativity. He said 95 percent of marketing as we know it would be done by AI within five years. Whole departments would be replaced by agents. Decades-old workflows would be transformed.
That interview, held at OpenAI's offices in San Francisco, was a turning point. Brotman and Sack left stunned. They walked around the block in silence.
"We were just processing," Brotman says. "Everything we thought we knew about business and the future had shifted."
That's when it clicked: this was bigger than anything they had ever experienced. It was their "Holy Shit Moment."
Because that's what it was. And that's what it still is, for anyone paying attention.
The AI-First Restaurant
For Adam Brotman, the restaurant industry isn't just another vertical. It's where digital meets human, where a line of hungry customers can make or break your bottom line. He's lived it, from his days building the Starbucks app to consulting with some of the biggest names in hospitality.
So when he says AI is a game-changer for restaurants, he means it.
"Restaurants have always struggled to compete with bigger retailers on technology," Brotman says. "They run on razor-thin margins, always focusing on the guest, the food, the experience. Tech has often been an afterthought."
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That's no longer an option. "The playing field has changed," he says. "You can't say, 'I don't have a tech team or business intelligence.' You do. It's called AI."
So what does that mean? For starters, every conversation matters. Team huddles, problem-solving sessions—record them, transcribe them, feed them into AI. That pile of chatter is now a goldmine of insight.
Customer feedback is no longer just something you respond to. It is data. Use AI to structure that feedback, cross-reference it with your notes, and figure out what's working and what's not.
And the data you already have? "You don't need a massive data warehouse," Brotman says. "Snapshot it weekly, feed it into AI, and get a clear, real-time look at what customers are buying, what trends are emerging, and where you need to pivot."
Related: These College Friends Wanted to Sell Better Food. Now, Their Company Is Publicly Traded.
Andy Sack is quick to point out that an AI-first restaurant starts with an AI-first mindset. "You don't have to be an expert," he says. "Start with a problem—labor, supply chain, marketing—and let AI help you map out solutions."
His advice: Don't overcomplicate it. "Just ask," Sack says. "Treat it like an advisor. Tell it what's on your mind and let it help you see what's possible."
For restaurant operators who've always fought for every inch of progress, that might be the biggest shift of all. The world where you had to choose between hospitality and technology is gone.
And for Brotman and Sack, it all goes back to that first Holy Shit Moment—the realization that AI wasn't just another tool, but a tectonic shift that would change everything.
"The ground is moving," Brotman says. "We're just helping restaurants stand on it."
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