Electronic Pizza Ordering Has Advanced In 40 Years (Video)
By Edward Cardenas
SOUTHFIELD (CBS Detroit) - When the first electronic pizza order was placed 40 years ago, employees at East Lansing pizzerias had trouble believing the order.
Now, orders are placed by computer with some regularity as Domino's and other pizza companies offer mobile ordering from smart phones and websites.
Placing an order by computer was considered a technological milestone on Dec. 4, 1974, when Michigan State University's Artificial Language Laboratory used language processing applications to give a computer a voice and order the pizza, according to Fast Company.
A YouTube video of the news report showed the process of the order being placed - which took a few tries because the voice isn't as smooth as Apple's Siri - before a pizzeria accepted the order.
Fast forward four decades and technology and pizza are almost synonymous, especially for Domino's. The Ann Arbor-based pizza chain offers a voice-activated ordering on their mobile app, in addition to order tracking and mobile payments.
This ordering option has allowed Domino's to grow to be one of the top five companies in terms of online transactions, according to the company, with about 40 percent of Domino's sales in the United States coming through digital ordering channels.
