Starbucks and Alibaba team on voice ordering and delivery

Starbucks is launching voice ordering and delivery capabilities within Alibaba’s smart speaker, Tmall Genie. Chinese customers can now order beverages and food by using their voice for delivery within 30 minutes, tapping Alibaba’s Ele.me platform.

An exclusive Starbucks-themed Tmall Genie is available through the Starbucks virtual store in China. “We are thrilled to provide our cutting-edge Artificial Intelligence technology through Tmall Genie to serve Starbucks’ digitally-savvy customers in China,” says Miffy Chen, General Manager at Alibaba A.I. Labs which leads the development of Tmall Genie.

“Earlier this year, we launched food order and delivery service through Ele.me in response to our users’ needs for on-demand local services. We’re excited to introduce an even more diverse and enriched experience on our platform through Starbucks voice ordering and provide a direct benefit to Chinese consumers within their daily routine.”

“This ushers in a new era of digital customer engagement for Starbucks, leveraging groundbreaking digital technology to create an unprecedented experience that elevates our connection with customers to new heights,” comments Molly Liu, VP and General Manager, Digital Ventures, Starbucks China.

“We are focused on ensuring that voice ordering is truly personal, and we look forward to offering our customers more convenient moments and new opportunities to engage with us on a single integrated platform as they move throughout the day.”