Tech geniuses sue McDonald's for $900MILLION after invention to fix McFlurry machines was banned
TECH startup Kytch has slammed McDonald's with a massive $900 million lawsuit over the ban of its McFlurry machine-fixing device.
The tiny startup, which invented a gadget to troubleshoot McDonald's soft-serve ice cream machines, filed a 133-page legal complaint against the fast-food giant this past Tuesday.
The official document accuses McDonald's of falsely claiming Kytch's product was prone to "cause serious human injury," as well thwarting the startup's contracts with current and potential customers.
The pleading was brought forth by Kytch's cofounders, Melissa Nelson and Jeremy O'Sullivan, who are demanding no less than $900 million in damages.
McDonald's has had issues with its McFlurry ice cream serving machines, which are provided by appliance manufacturing company Taylor.
However, in 2019, Kytch was brought on board to fix the malfunctionings – the startup created a gadget that could be placed inside the ice cream machine and send real-time data to a manager’s mobile phone that identified the problem and suggested a solution.
Now, the start-up is saying that McDonald's conspired with Taylor via emails in November 2020 to have Kytch's devices pulled out every McDonald's franchise.
The pleading also notes that McDonald's used those emails to promote a new ice cream machine built by Taylor, which Kytch alleges utilizes their technology.
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According to the legal complaint, the damage to Kytch was "instant and monumental" as many customers canceled their subscription service with them.
"Kytch had been barreling towards $50 million valuations in 2020 as it quickly expanded to fast-food restaurants throughout the country — and its valuation in the following year was projected to be exponentially more. That all changed after the false ads," the pleading read.
"They've tarnished our name. They scared off our customers and ruined our business. They were anti-competitive. They lied about a product that they said would be released," Nelson told Wired.
"McDonald's had every reason to know that Kytch was safe and didn't have any issues. It was not dangerous like they claimed. And so we're suing them," she added.
Wired reported that Kytch's device was successful in tackling McDonald's McFlurry machines' issues prior to their conflict.
One McDonald's restaurant owner even told Wired that the device saved him "easily thousands of dollars a month" in repair fees.
In other news, the creators of a chilling new horror game say that the title is so disturbing they've been forced to censor it on PlayStation.
Apple has announced updates to AirTags following claims that the coin-sized tracking devices are being used to stalk people.
And TikTok has announced new rules, banning users who deadname or misgender others.
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