Stanford AI Burger Recipes Match Reconstructed Big Mac in Blind Taste Tests

Stanford University researchers trained an artificial intelligence system called BurgerAI on 2,216 burger recipes from Food.com. Some of the resulting recipes matched or outperformed a reconstructed McDonald's Big Mac in blind taste tests, Fox News reported. The study, published in npj Science of Food, involved more than 100 diners who sampled the AI burgers at a San Francisco restaurant.

An executive chef prepared the samples. BurgerAI's recipes scored the same or better than the Big Mac in overall liking, flavor and texture. One AI-designed mushroom burger achieved an environmental impact score more than an order of magnitude lower than the Big Mac.

A bean burger reached nearly twice the nutritional score of the Big Mac, the researchers stated. "Food choices are some of the most consequential decisions humans make every day," said Vahidullah Tac, a researcher on the project. Ellen Kuhl, the Stanford professor of mechanical engineering who led the work, said most AI systems predict what already exists.

"We wanted AI to invent what should exist next," Kuhl added. BurgerAI can adjust recipes for higher nutrition, lower environmental impact and personalization based on gender, age and physical activity, according to a Stanford Report news release. Fox News Digital reached out to McDonald's for comment.

The researchers noted that generative AI could extend similar design methods to pharmaceuticals and other product areas.