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A car sits in the drive-thru at a McDonald's restaurant on January 27, 2022 in El Cerrito, California.
McDonald's is being sued by a tech startup over its ice cream machines.Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
  • Kytch is using technology to control ice cream machines.

  • The chain is accused of interference in customer contracts.

  • McDonald's is said to have sent emails to its franchisees saying Kytch devices violated machine warranties.

A startup is suing Mcdonald's for $900 million, saying it created a device to fix the chain's ice cream machines.

McDonald's is accused in a lawsuit of sending emails to its franchisees saying that Kytch devices violated the machines' warranties and stole confidential information.

McDonald's said the device posed a safety threat and could lead to serious human injury.

Kytch describes the claims as false and defamatory. Taylor Company is the main supplier of ice cream machines for the chain.

According to the lawsuit, Kytch's co-founders are seeking $900 million in damages and have accused McDonald's of false advertising and interference in its contracts with customers.

In a statement sent to Insider, McDonald's said it owes it to its customers, crew, and franchisees to maintain its rigorous safety standards and work with fully vetting suppliers. Kytch's claims are meritless and we will respond accordingly.

After learning that Kytch's unauthorized device was being used at some McDonald's restaurants, the fast-food chain sent a warning to its franchisees. The company said that the remote-operating system Kytch enables in their soft-serve machines was the reason for this.

The safety certifications mentioned in Kytch's complaint do not meet the robust requirements of the chain. McDonald's said that Kytch had not addressed the many different scenarios that could result in injury.

Insider made a request for comment from Kytch, but he did not respond.

According to McBroken, a website that tracks the chain's broken ice cream machines, more than one third of them are not working in New York.

McDonald's has failed to meaningfully improve the machines, and the fast-food giant has even granted Taylor exclusive rights to supply kitchen appliances to more than 13,000 retail locations in the United States, according to the lawsuit.

This arrangement brings in millions of dollars of revenue for Taylor and its network of franchised distributors.

Mary Meisenzahl reported in September last year that the Federal Trade Commission was investigating Mcdonald's frequently broken ice cream machines. The chain said it had no reason to think it was under investigation.

If their goal was to destroy Kytch, they succeeded. The trail of really damning evidence they have broken is what blew up in their face.

It took him and Nelson months to gather all the evidence and data, and they had to convince very smart attorneys to file a lawsuit against McDonald's.

The original article is on Business Insider.

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