McDonald's to acquire Israeli start-up Dynamic yield for $300 million
Dynamic Yield’s service uses machine learning algorithms to help businesses tailor their website to individual consumers according to behavioral patterns.
By ILANIT CHERNICKA sign for the U.S. fast food restaurant chain McDonald's is seen outside one of their restaurants(photo credit: YVES HERMAN / REUTERS)
US fast food franchise McDonald’s is in the process of acquiring Israeli start-up Dynamic Yield for $300 million (NIS 1.1 billion), it announced early Tuesday.Dynamic Yield’s service uses machine learning algorithms to help businesses tailor their website to individual consumers according to behavioral patterns.Dynamic Yield was founded in 2011 by Liad Agmon and Omri Mendelevich and has raised some $77 million so far, according to a report by TheMarker. It has some 200 employees and is based in Tel Aviv.McDonald’s is acquiring the Israeli company to increase its Internet marketing efforts. It added that it plans to use this technology to create a drive-thru menu that can be tailored to things like the weather, current restaurant traffic and trending menu items.“We started Dynamic Yield seven years ago with the premise that customer-centric brands must make personalization a core activity,” Agmon said in a statement. “We’re thrilled to be joining an iconic global brand such as McDonald’s and are excited to innovate in ways that have a real impact on people’s daily lives.”Steve Eastbrook, McDonald’s CEO, said: “With this acquisition, we are expanding our ability to increase the role that technology and data will play in our future, and how quickly we can implement our vision to create a more personalized experience for our customers.”The franchise added that Dynamic Yield will continue to operate as a standalone company serving existing and future clients, and that “it will continue to invest in the core personalization technology.”
