AI and the Future of Food: What’s Cooking Beyond the Screen (a few thoughts…)

By Rani Sheilagh - Cyberpsychologist | Wellness & Lifestyle Futurist

AI is changing the way we eat before we have even taken a bite. From AI-powered recipes to robot-driven drive-throughs, and food images that never saw the inside of a kitchen. The digital food culture and landscape is transforming quickly.

A taste of what’s happening

• Product innovation: Mondelez used AI to create the Gluten-Free Golden Oreo, cutting development time by 80% while human taste-buds still had the final say. Okay, it is ultra-processed, but nevertheless still a clever example of how AI is speeding up product development.

• Automation: In the USA, Wendy’s FreshAI is already in 300+ drive-throughs, with plans to replace human order-takers.

• Food visuals: AI-generated photography is flooding feeds, yet many still prefer the authenticity of human-shot images. And in my own cyber research faces still win over food images, but that’s a story for another time.

As a Cyberpsychologist and Wellness & Lifestyle Futurist, I see both opportunity and challenge. AI can make food culture more creative, efficient, and inclusive. But it can also shape cravings, narrow food trends, create unrealistic expectations and strip away the cultural nuances that make food so powerful.

The real question is:
How do we embrace AI as a creative ally and tool without losing the smell of onions sizzling, the warmth of a shared table, the happy accidents or the authenticity of a family recipe?

A few things to whet your appetite…

• The Role of AI in the Food Industry – ScienceDirect
  Rigorous research into where AI adds real value.

• Humans Must Remain at the Heart of the AI Story – Financial Times
  A timely reminder that technology should enhance, not erase, our human spark.

• Would You Eat a Meal Dreamed Up by a Computer? – BBC Reel
  A fascinating look at what happens when AI steps into the kitchen.