As the voices decrying mobile's negative impacts on people and society grow louder, Starbucks President and CEO Kevin Johnson yesterday urged an audience at the National Retail Federation's Big Show not to be afraid of reinventing the future through technology, but insisted innovation must come with a focus on fostering human interaction. Community is ingrained in Starbucks, which was inspired by founder Howard Schultz's visits to lively espresso bars in Italy, said Stephanie Mehta, Fast Company editor-in-chief and moderator of the session "Nurturing humanity in modern-day retail." As one of the pioneers of leveraging mobile to enhance customer experiences through loyalty, payments and order-ahead tools, Starbucks also understands that sometimes customers just want to quickly pick up their order and get on their way. "We have to boldly reinvent the future," Johnson said. "If mobile internet has created these new scenarios, we embrace that, but we don't do it at the expense of human connection."

Last year the chain launched its "bean to cup" blockchain pilot in an effort to create more transparency in its supply chain. The traceability technology is another mark in Starbucks' commitment to ethically sourcing coffee beans. The company relies on the expertise of tech vendors, including Microsoft, to push its initiatives. In May the company tapped Microsoft for Azure's reinforcement learning technology. The ML technology is designed to digest feedback and then "make decisions in complex, unpredictable environments."

Called Deep Brew, this isn't about a flavor of coffee or tea. Deep Brew is the company's artificial intelligence (AI) program, and it's all about "nurturing humanity," as Johnson put it. If this sounds really strange, maybe rethinking AI would be helpful. At its core, it's about teaching computers to find patterns in data sets too big for humans to analyze. For example, AI company Atomwise looks for new compounds to be used in drugs to better treat diseases.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO Kevin Johnson is determined to deliver a company culture centered around meaningful human interaction. This month, he announced a new "brew" that figures to be a big part of this culture. Called Deep Brew, this isn't about a flavor of coffee or tea. Deep Brew is the company's artificial intelligence (AI) program, and it's all about "nurturing humanity," as Johnson put it. If this sounds really strange, maybe rethinking AI would be helpful.

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) CEO Kevin Johnson is determined to deliver a company culture centered around meaningful human interaction. This month, he announced a new "brew" that figures to be a big part of this culture. Called Deep Brew, this isn't about a flavor of coffee or tea. Deep Brew is the company's artificial intelligence (AI) program, and it's all about "nurturing humanity," as Johnson put it. If this sounds really strange, maybe rethinking AI would be helpful.

The news: The word "digital" came up 44 times on Starbucks' investor call Thursday, following its earnings report that beat analyst estimates with $6.75 billion in third quarter revenue. Starbucks CEO Kevin Johnson highlighted the company's "Deep Brew" initiative that leverages artificial intelligence to automate inventory orders; predict staffing needs; anticipate equipment maintenance; personalize customer offers (its Starbucks Rewards loyalty membership program grew 15 percent to 17.6 million members); and more. "Deep Brew is a key differentiator for the future," Johnson said on the call. Johnson, a former Microsoft and Juniper Networks leader who took over as CEO in 2017, wrote about Deep Brew in a LinkedIn post last week. The company is working with Microsoft to power the underlying infrastructure for Deep Brew.

Starbucks Corp. is getting personal with its customers, enlisting help from advanced technologies that the company says will kick its digital capabilities up a notch. Kevin Johnson, Starbucks' SBUX, 0.44% chief executive, talked on the post-earnings conference call with analysts about Deep Brew, an artificial intelligence program, saying it has been percolating for the past year. The company has been ramping up its investment in artificial intelligence during the course of the program. "Deep Brew will increasingly power our personalization engine, optimize store labor allocations and drive inventory management in stores," said Johnson, according to a FactSet transcript. With more customers signing up for the company's loyalty program, the opportunity for personalization is increasing.