It’s no surprise that at McDonald's, we’ve got a thing for Drive Thru. After all, that’s what happens when you have over 25,000 of them worldwide—the most of any restaurant company in the world. And when you know Drive Thru like we do, you can’t help but ask yourself: what should the future look like?

Already, we’re welcoming a new generation of customers. One that expects more features and convenience than ever before. Lucky for us, we know our strengths, and as we step toward the future we’re doubling down on each of them.

Because what our customers love about McDonald’s isn’t just the food or coffee with a smile on the side, it's the speed, simplicity and consistency of their entire experience. Our desire to innovate starts here: By using new technologies to revolutionize the way customers pick up their food.

Here are some amazing Drive Thru concepts and initiatives we’re excited to be testing:

• Easy Ordering and Payment ID: We’ve been cooking up ways to make the ordering process easier and more streamlined with automated ordering and payments made by identifying customers at the display screen.

• Express Pick Up: New technology will alert crew to prep orders when customers are nearby, while dedicated parking spaces ensure fast pick up.

• Express Drive Thru: A new lane lets customers using the app skip the line and get their food even faster (that means less time waiting and more time enjoying delicious, hotter food).

• On-the-Go: A smaller restaurant footprint would focus exclusively on efficiency, featuring Drive Thru, takeaway, and delivery with limited or no dine-in seating.

Growth comes through innovation. After looking at both the landscape and our customer, we’re once leaping even further ahead by obsessing over what works best for everyday McDonald’s customers: speed, convenience, and ease.

Put it all together and you’ve got a McDonald’s experience made with the future in mind. One we hope reaches more than 10,000 restaurants worldwide and offers countless more opportunities for customers to have the experiences they know and love. Experiences we believe could be truly transformative.

At McDonald’s, we’ve been setting the standard for Drive Thrus for more than 45 years. We’re always testing new ideas, learning what our customers love, and exploring ideas that make the McDonald’s Drive Thru experience faster and easier for everyone. Stay tuned.