Starbucks Coffee Korea walks the talk

Voice recognition ordering has been introduced by Starbucks Coffee Korea, thanks to a 50/50 JV between Starbucks Coffee International and Shinsegae Group.

Starbucks Coffee Korea has become the first retailer to use Samsung’s intelligent assistant Bixby, available on certain Samsung Galaxy devices, to allow for end-to-end ordering and payment.

The features are an extension of Starbucks Siren Order, the company’s mobile order-and-pay technology that lets customers in South Korea order and pay for their purchases before arriving at the store.

Bixby allows members of Starbucks loyalty program (My Starbucks Rewards) to place an order and pay through voice recognition “on command”. Customers simply speak as they would to a barista, including modifying their drinks to meet their preferences.