What QSRs Need to Know About Agentic Commerce | Modern Restaurant Management

QSRs are becoming test cases for agentic commerce, as AI agents flood their websites and reshape the entire customer journey from how orders are placed and loyalty is built to, unfortunately, how fraudsters operate.

Agentic-driven traffic refers to the growing volume of AI  systems designed to initiate, plan, and execute tasks autonomously, explained Ozge Ozcan, chief customer officer at Forter, which analyzed AI Agent visits to QSR websites finding they spiked nearly 3,000 percent. Referrals from AI agents to QSR brands grew 50 percent between June and mid-August. August alone saw an additional 20 percent increase, signaling accelerating momentum. Many brands tie referrals to incentives or loyalty offers such as welcome promos, app-only deals to further boost conversion once a user lands. 

“These agents don’t just respond, they decide. In the context of digital commerce, this means shopping will be increasingly delegated to intelligent agents that interact directly with merchant systems.”

Why QSRs Fit the Agentic Model

QSR sites also tend to have low-friction checkout flows, fewer steps, simpler menus and mobile-first design, factors that are a great fit for the way AI referrals behave, Ozcan added. 

“Because of the relatively low average order values and easy checkout, many shoppers see QSRs as a low-risk business to experiment with AI shopping. In fact, AI-driven conversion rates in QSRs have climbed 250 percent in the last six months. QSR customers are high-intent. They usually arrive at the virtual checkout with a clear goal in mind: they know what they want (food and drinks), and they’re acting in the moment. That naturally leads to faster and more frequent conversions.”

Ozcan expects AI-driven conversions in QSR to continue accelerating, driven by both consumer behavior and continued innovation in agentic shopping. 

“Many of the merchants we’re speaking with see agentic commerce as an emerging channel that will ultimately be part of their global omnichannel strategies. With agentic AI, merchants can benefit from faster, frictionless transactions driven by delegated decision-making, stronger loyalty behaviors as agents optimize for repeat purchases, and higher-value conversions from ultra-efficient, data-driven ‘customers.’ The data we’re gathering from our AI dashboard makes it clear that AI agents aren’t a passing trend, they’re here to stay.”

Building an AI-Compatible Digital Storefront

To capitalize on this trend, QSR brands need to create an AI-compatible digital storefront that ensures products, offers, and experiences are easily accessible for AI tools to support, Ozcan said. 

“The smoother the experience, the greater the engagement and conversion impact for the operator and their business. Once AI-compatible measures are established, tracking performance metrics, including visit and referral conversion rates, traffic volumes, and autonomous checkout activity, to track progress and optimize strategy, will ensure operators and their storefronts are adapting in a way that optimizes results.”

While there is a lot of optimism surrounding AI agents as they become the new shoppers, it’s important to remember that with every major shift in e-commerce, a wave of fraud follows, Ozcan cautioned, adding that they are already witnessing fraudsters attempting to hide behind AI agents to impersonate legitimate buyers and carry out malicious activity.

“QSR operators must find a balance between innovation and vigilance, ensuring they can capture agentic growth without increasing their business’s exposure to risk. Differentiating legitimate AI-assisted shoppers from fraudulent actors will be crucial.”

Customer Acquisition Shift to an Agent-Driven Model

AI agents are turning fast food ordering into a delegated, data-driven experience and brands that adapt quickly by building trust signals and frictionless pathways for AI interactions will be the ones that succeed in this next phase of digital commerce, Ozcan said.

“QSRs are the gold standard for speed and convenience. Agentic shopping has the opportunity to deepen this core differentiator. Traditionally, QSRs have optimized speed and convenience by introducing drive-thrus, mobile apps, and third-party delivery platforms. Today, agentic AI takes that one step further by removing friction altogether. The customer no longer needs to open an app or re-enter preferences to place an order. Their AI agent will soon know their favorite meal, what dietary restrictions to factor into the order, and where to deliver — and can place an order in seconds.”

From a business standpoint, this evolution has two major implications, Ozcan anticipates.

”First, loyalty and personalization move from being app-based to agent-based. The ‘customer’ isn’t necessarily the one making decisions anymore — it’s the AI agent. Second, it changes how operators should think about acquisition and retention. They’ll need to strategize ways to optimize not just for human behavior but for AI-driven decision logic. Things like price transparency, consistency, and reliability become deciding factors for these agents.”