Vox AI raises $8.7M seed funding to transform drive-thru ordering with voice AI

The drive-thru hasn’t changed much since it was introduced in the 1940s—cars, windows, and a lot of shouting over static-filled speakers. But a new startup wants to bring it into the future. Amsterdam-based restaurant startup Vox AI has raised raises €7.5 million ($8.7 million) in seed funding to replace those crackling exchanges with natural-sounding, multilingual voice assistants that can handle orders and streamline operations in quick-service restaurants.

The round was led by Headline, with participation from True, Simon Capital, and returning investor Souschef Ventures. It brings Vox AI’s total funding to $10 million and will help the company expand globally, starting with a new office in San Francisco.

Founded in October 2023, Vox AI is targeting the $1 trillion quick-service restaurant market, where operators are facing labor shortages, high turnover, and rising wage pressures. Its voice platform lets customers place orders in drive-thrus and mobile apps while giving staff real-time shift guidance and system alerts.

Restaurant Tech Startup Vox AI Raises $8.7M to Redefine Drive-Thru with Voice AI

Unlike many speech technologies that still rely on human oversight, Vox AI’s system is fully autonomous from day one. It doesn’t require a human-in-the-loop during training or deployment, meaning restaurants can roll it out across multiple locations without costly adjustments. The software understands more than 90 languages and dialects, learns accents, menu synonyms, and even adapts to background noise or the quirks of a building’s acoustics.

Maurice Kroon, Vox AI’s co-founder and CEO, says the company is aiming higher than incremental improvements.

“Vox AI is pushing voice technology far beyond generic Natural Language Processing. We’re not just improving voice technology. We’re building a new industry standard for how guests interact with fast-food chains and QSR brands they love and how restaurant staff run them,” he said. “Our goal is to make voice the de facto interface for every QSR location – without the need to upgrade their current hardware.”

The technology is already in use with some of the world’s largest fast-food chains. Early deployments show it can shorten queues, improve upselling, and free up employees to focus on other tasks. Vox AI claims its system can boost ROI by up to 17 times, a figure that’s hard for operators to ignore.

Investors see it as a shift in how restaurants operate rather than a simple upgrade. “Vox AI delivers something the QSR space has never had before: autonomous, intelligent, real-time voice interaction at a global scale. It’s not a feature – it’s a platform shift,” said Dominic Wilhelm, Partner at Headline.

Vox AI’s ambitions go beyond just drive-thru orders. Its platform also enables voice pre-ordering through mobile apps and an “Employee Assist” tool that provides hands-free inventory alerts and shift support. The system plugs directly into existing restaurant tech stacks, reducing friction for operators wary of disruption.

With fresh funding and a foothold in both Europe and the U.S., Vox AI is positioning itself as the company that could finally drag the drive-thru into the 21st century—and maybe even make waiting in line for a burger a thing of the past.

Vox AI Team