Internal efforts to maximize profit margins at fast food outlets now rely on software that determines the most a customer is willing to pay for a meal. McDonald's is using this machine learning system to generate location-specific 'optimal prices' for its menu items across nearly 14,000 restaurants in the US and other international markets.

The deployment of algorithmic pricing may attract antitrust scrutiny from regulators as the company shifts away from standardized costs. The strategy risks alienating customers who object to price variations on staple products, such as the Big Mac, across different locations.