McDonald's Launches Mid-Market "Digital Incubator"

The ongoing mid-Market revival has been marked with some of the starriest names in the tech firmament: Twitter, Uber, Square...McDonald's. Yup, the Golden Arches are moving into the local tech scene, having picked up a Market Street office and recruited engineers from the likes of Facebook and PayPal. According to Advertising Age, the company is testing digital payments, augmented-reality apps (complete with QR codes on fry boxes), and other exciting technological innovations. Chief Digital Officer Atif Rafiq, an Amazon alum hired by Mickey D's to turn around its poor perception with those smartphone-crazy kids, came up with the idea for the incubator; in a statement, McDonald's says they "want a presence in the heart of the tech community, enabling us to attract world-class talent." Meanwhile, a bunch of new recruits are likely contemplating the irony of having earned college degrees in order to avoid working at McDonald's, only to end up working at McDonald's.

· McDonald's Sets Up Shop in Silicon Valley [Ad Age]