Bojangles Expands Hi Auto Drive-Thru AI to 100 More Restaurants

Bojangles is expanding its AI-powered drive-thru ordering system, Bo-Linda, to 100 more restaurants by mid-2027. The fast-food chain announced a multi-year extension of its partnership with AI company Hi Auto on October 22, 2026.

The expansion comes as some major restaurant chains have slowed or reconsidered their voice AI trials. Bojangles, however, is moving ahead with technology that already operates at nearly 500 of its locations.

The company also plans to introduce features that go beyond taking orders, including smarter menu recommendations based on drive-thru traffic. These changes show how Bojangles aims to use AI to improve restaurant operations, although the reported performance results come from the company and its technology partner.

What Bojangles Announced

Bojangles and Hi Auto began working together in 2024 to introduce Bo-Linda, an AI-powered drive-thru ordering system. According to Restaurant Dive, the system now operates at nearly 500 restaurants, with another 100 locations planned by mid-2027. That would bring it to roughly two-thirds of Bojangles' 890-plus restaurants.

The companies say Bo-Linda handles more than one million orders per week with a 98% success rate. However, they have not publicly explained how that success rate is measured, and no independent verification was cited.

Bojangles' chief information officer, Richard Del Valle, said the system improves the experience for both customers and employees. Franchisee Michael Haynes also reported positive results at his restaurant, according to Nation's Restaurant News.

New Features Coming to Bo-Linda

Bojangles and Hi Auto are expanding Bo-Linda's capabilities with three features designed to improve drive-thru speed, order accuracy, and reliability.

1. Smarter menu recommendations

Bo-Linda will adjust its upselling suggestions based on the length of the drive-thru queue. During busy periods, it will recommend items that are quicker to prepare. When lines are shorter, it can suggest items that take longer. The existing system already considers time of day, weather, and inventory.

2. Vehicle-based order matching

At restaurants with two drive-thru lanes, Bo-Linda pairs each order with an image of the customer's vehicle. This helps employees match orders to the correct cars when the lanes merge, reducing the risk of mix-ups.

The feature addresses a common challenge at dual-lane drive-thrus. Customers place orders in separate lanes, but both lines eventually merge for collection. This can make it difficult for staff to identify which car placed each order. By linking orders to vehicle images, Bo-Linda provides an additional way to check that customers receive the correct food. However, the companies have not published separate accuracy figures showing how much the feature reduces order mix-ups.

3. Faster point-of-sale connectivity

A new XPI integration with Global Payments' Genius platform connects AI voice ordering directly to the point-of-sale system in real time. According to QSR Web, the upgrade is designed to reduce delays and improve reliability as Bo-Linda expands across more restaurants.

Hi Auto's Growth and the Wider Restaurant Industry

Hi Auto's voice AI technology is used beyond Bojangles. According to Nation's Restaurant News, its AI Order Taker operates in more than 1,000 restaurants, including Checkers & Rally's, Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken, Burger King New Zealand, and Popeyes UK.

The company also reports operating in the US, UK, and Australia and handling more than 100 million orders annually. Bojangles named Hi Auto its 2025 Legendary Supplier of the Year, the first technology partner to receive the award, according to QSR Web.

But voice AI adoption across the restaurant industry remains mixed. McDonald's ended an earlier test with IBM after reported accuracy problems, while Burger King and Taco Bell have slowed their voice-ordering trials following customer concerns and technical issues.

Other chains are continuing to invest. Restaurant Dive reports that McDonald's is developing its own voice AI system, Taco Bell is working with Omilia, and Dairy Queen has offered some franchisees access to Presto's technology.

These developments show that restaurant chains are taking different approaches to AI ordering, with some expanding deployments while others reconsider how the technology works for customers.

What Customers Think About AI Ordering

Not all customers are comfortable ordering from AI systems. According to research from Technomic, cited by Nation's Restaurant News, 46% of consumers found ordering directly from a restaurant employee appealing, compared with just 23% who found AI drive-thru ordering appealing. Another 46% found AI ordering unappealing.

These findings highlight a challenge for restaurants adopting voice AI. Speed and order accuracy matter, but customers also need a reliable ordering experience.

Bojangles and Hi Auto report a 98% success rate for Bo-Linda across more than one million weekly orders. However, the companies have not explained exactly how they measure success or how often employees need to intervene. Without that information, it is difficult to assess the system's reliability or its impact on customers.

How AI Could Affect Restaurant Workers

Bojangles says Bo-Linda allows employees to spend less time taking drive-thru orders and more time preparing food and serving customers. However, the company has not provided detailed staffing or employee data to show how the technology affects workers.

As Bo-Linda expands, changes in order times, staffing levels, and employee retention could help measure its impact.

The new upselling feature also raises questions. By adjusting menu suggestions based on queue length, Bo-Linda aims to balance sales with service speed. But it remains unclear whether these recommendations will increase sales or how customers will respond to them.

For employees, the key question is whether automated ordering changes daily workloads in a measurable way. Bojangles says the system allows workers to focus on preparing food and serving customers, but the announcement does not provide staffing figures, employee-retention data, or a comparison of workloads before and after deployment. These measures would help determine whether the reported benefits extend beyond faster order-taking.

What to Watch Next

Bojangles plans to expand Bo-Linda to nearly 600 restaurants by mid-2027. The rollout will provide an opportunity to assess how well the system performs across more locations and different drive-thru setups.

Independent data on order accuracy, customer satisfaction, and employee experience would help verify the company's performance claims. Meanwhile, how other major restaurant chains proceed with their voice AI trials could offer a clearer picture of the technology's future in fast-food service.