Introducing TacoBot, a totally new and completely intelligent way to order food together on Slack. We created TacoBot with an artificial intelligence engine, so it can talk to everyone in a group at the same time and understand natural language like a real human. TacoBot introduced a new kind of social ordering, and it did so in true Taco Bell fashion, with clever, culturally relevant replies. For example, tell TacoBot you’re drunk and, like a good friend, it’ll add a cup of water to your order. Ask it about dating on Tinder, and you’ll get a quick, quirky reply.

In the end, TacoBot e-commercized the top coworking platform on the planet and, by doing so, invented an entirely new way for people to order food together.

The TacoBot is a Slack bot that lets you order food directly on the platform. It was built with an artificial intelligence engine and a nerdy, pop-cultural personality. It understands natural language and interacts like a real live human. No need to act like a machine to talk to one. Users can quickly customize and place their orders by simply chatting with the TacoBot. For example, “One soft taco with extra cheese, bacon, and no lettuce” will add it to cart. When done, “checkout” will finalize the order and handle payment right on Slack. TacoBot also coordinates group orders between friends on Slack. Users can simply ask “who is in for lunch?” and tag their friends. The bot will make sure everyone gets invited and will place their orders.

On April 5, 2016, TacoBot launched as a private beta program with exclusive partners: Giphy, SAV Studios, Fullscreen, FoodBeast, and Thought

Taco Bell became the first food brand on Slack to offer food ordering directly on the platform, achieving one of its main business goals.

The idea was a “small bet” investment of $40,000. Its debut generated over one billion earned media impressions, with an estimated ad value of over $10 million.

There was a tremendous response from press and social media. The DRUM! said, “It’s certainly the future of food ordering for businesses…” Wired asked if “The future of work is… ordering Taco Bell through Slack?” The Verge compared Taco Bell to tech giants like Facebook, Microsoft, and Amazon and said “… TacoBot is getting in on the ground floor.” This helped position Taco Bell as a technology leader and extended its mission to foster new kinds of social food experiences.

Taco Bell invited interested teams to join the waitlist to get their hands on TacoBot. Over 1,200 teams joined.