Starbucks fans now have yet another reason to love their coffee. Not that you need a reason, but Starbucks now allows you to order your coffee through its virtual barista. Forget endless scrolling and typing out your extra-customized order. Whether you’d like a decaf with extra sugar or an espresso with foam on top, you just need to tell your digital assistant what you want and it’ll automatically place your order.
My Starbucks Barista
This new feature comes as an extension of Starbucks Mobile Order & Pay where you can make your payment even before you arrive at the store to pick up your coffee. Named, My Starbucks Barista, the new messaging UI makes talking to your virtual assistant just the same as talking to a real-life barista. It’s currently available as a limited beta test on the iPhone app. Starbucks has started the test with 1000 users and has plans to expand the user base in phases over the next few months.
How it works
Amazon Alexa
Apart from the iPhone, Starbucks has brought the new virtual barista to Amazon Alexa as well. Introduced at the Starbucks Investor Day, the feature can also confirm your current location, where you can pick up your coffee, and even continue to process your payments. In Amazon Echo devices, Starbucks has introduced Reorder Skill – which comes in handy when you’re repeating the same orders regularly. You just have to say, “Alexa, order my Starbucks.” and your usual morning joe will be ready for pickup.
Android users…
Sorry, folks, but you’ll have to wait a little longer. The coffee giant will launch the Android version later in the year. Check out more details on the Starbucks blog.
