PAR Technology launches PAR Intelligence AI Platform for multi-unit operators

AI restaurant platform PAR Technology surges into 13,000 chains with predictive ordering engine

Sarah Mills | GlobalBeat

NEW YORK — PAR Technology unveiled its PAR Intelligence platform on Tuesday, putting predictive AI into ordering and inventory systems used by 13,000 restaurant locations nationwide.

The launch gives multi-unit operators a single dashboard that forecasts demand, tracks guest trends and pinpoints waste across every store, the company said.

Restaurants have burned cash on excess ingredients while running out of bestsellers, PAR chief executive Savneet Singh told reporters. “Franchisees told us they needed numbers they could trust before the lunch rush hits,” Singh said.

The system plugs into PAR’s existing point-of-sale network and will cost operators $99 per location each month. Early adopters include sandwich chain Which Wich and pizza brand Mazzio’s, according to PAR.

Company engineers fed five years of historical ticket data from 500 million orders into machine-learning models, Singh said. The platform now predicts hourly demand for individual menu items within 3 percent accuracy, he added.

Dallas-based Which Wich saw food waste drop 12 percent during a 30-store pilot that began in August, the chain’s director of operations Alex Cook confirmed. “We stopped over-prepping turkey at 10 a.m. because the platform showed Tuesday demand peaks at 12:30, not 11:45,” Cook said.

PAR shares jumped 8.4 percent to $42.17 on the New York Stock Exchange after the announcement, the biggest intraday gain since March.

Investors are betting restaurants will pay for anything that lowers razor-thin margins, Northcoast Research analyst John Healey wrote in a note. “Labor costs keep rising and chains need tech to stay profitable,” Healey said.

The sector spent $7.4 billion on software last year, up 14 percent from 2023, according to the National Restaurant Association. Chains with 50 or more locations drove 60 percent of that spending, the trade group said.

Smaller franchisees remain skeptical. Dave Guslander, who owns 8 Jimmy John’s stores in Wisconsin, said he fears “another monthly fee that promises gold.” Guslander added that he cancelled three AI tools last year because projections “missed the mark when weather changed.”

Competition is fierce. Toast, valued at $13 billion, added AI forecasting in January. NCR Voyix launched similar analytics for 20,000 diners last quarter. Uber Eats is testing demand prediction for grocery partners, a spokesperson confirmed.

PAR is leaning on its entrenched hardware base, Singh said. The company already controls the registers at Sonic, Taco Bell and Five Guys, giving it real-time data rivals cannot match. “We see the buttons pressed before corporate does,” he said.

Consumer groups raise privacy flags. The Electronic Frontier Foundation warned that ordering histories tied to phone numbers can reveal dietary conditions and religious habits. PAR said it anonymizes all data within 24 hours and never sells information to third parties.

Labor unions reacted cautiously. “We support tools that cut waste but not if the next step is cutting jobs,” UNITE HERE spokesperson Jenna Zollen said. Singh insisted the platform reallocates workers, it does not eliminate them. “We redirect staff from prep to guest service,” he said.

The platform launches into a market where food costs rose 5.1 percent in March, the steepest jump since 2022. Operators say every wasted tomato hurts. “If AI saves me 2 percent on food I keep a cook on payroll,” Chicago McDonald’s franchisee Maria Navarro said.

Background

PAR Technology began in 1968 as a defense contractor building radar keyboards for the U.S. Army. The company pivoted to restaurants in 1978 when a McDonald’s franchisee asked for a better cash register. By 1990 PAR equipment handled orders at 4,000 fast-food locations.

The New York firm doubled down on hospitality after selling its government division for $134 million in 2020. CEO Savneet Singh, a former hedge-fund analyst, took the helm and began acquiring software startups including loyalty platform Punchh for $500 million in 2021.

What’s Next

PAR Intelligence will add scheduling recommendations in July, promising to align staffing levels with predicted traffic. The company plans to expand analytics to food delivery apps by Q4, aiming to forecast which menu items travel best during peak hours.