Starbucks begins testing its AI barista for mobile ordering

Starbucks is putting its own spin on the virtual assistant. The popular coffee franchise has rolled out a Siri-like assistant app for mobile that lets you skip baristas and place orders by chatting or speaking directly to your phone. The feature utilizes artificial intelligence to process the incoming orders through a new messaging interface in the Starbucks app. Here, customers can also interact with the virtual assistant by messaging their order, chatbot-style. Additionally, the company is launching a skill for the Amazon Alexa platform, which lets customers re-order their favorite items by speaking to their Echo speaker or other Alexa-powered device.