Restaurant employees, meet your new AI coworker: It has every recipe memorized and may tattle to your boss Starbucks' Green Dot Assist is one of many AI "assistants" designed to help in-store staff with recipes, policies, and guest interactions. Illustration by Budrul Chukrut/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images AI "assistants" are transforming fast food with real-time data analysis and staff coaching. Chains like Burger King and Starbucks want AI to streamline tasks and improve customer service. Critics aren't sure that the digital coworkers are helpful — and some think they're a hindrance. At some Burger King drive-thrus, an AI assistant named Patty is quietly listening in. The system can hear when employees tell customers an item is out of stock and check the store's inventory. It can compare restaurants' "friendliness" scores by clocking when staff say "thank you" to guests. It can suggest what metrics managers should focus on each day.…