Oracle Hospitality Exec on the Plan for AI in ‘Every Single Release’

A luxury hotel that introduced AI voice assistants in its rooms reported a 30% reduction in routine service calls to the front desk, freeing up staff for more complex guest interactions. Additionally, guest satisfaction scores for room features and overall experience increased by 20%. AI-powered voice assistants are becoming increasingly common in hotel rooms, allowing guests to control room features, make requests, and access information hands-free.

• By integrating Despegar’s leading AI technology, Karisma Hotels & Resorts aims to offer seamless, personalized assistance to guests, setting itself apart as a forward-thinking hospitality brand.
• Gen AI may be embedded in interfaces like your phone or voice-powered computers in your kitchen or car.
• Last September, for example, the company announced the launch of a reimagined digital booking experience for its guests.
• Prior to Deloitte, Leila spent 6 years at PwC in the Deal Strategy & Operations team, focused on Hospitality.

Participants from across Sabre’s six main offices worldwide select teams of around five people, and they’ve given free reign to develop and pitch a product within one of three categories. Generative AI is still young, but some travel companies are encouraging workers to experiment as they determine how the tech will be used in the future. But few terms have generated as much excitement—and skepticism—as Artificial Intelligence (AI). Finally, Expectation Clarity provides a roadmap for what AI implementation will achieve and the roles that both humans and AI will play.

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This not only reduces operational costs but also strengthens a hotel’s brand as a leader in sustainability, opening up new markets and increasing customer loyalty (DataArt). For instance, AI’s ability to predict guest preferences enables hotels to offer upsells that feel personal and relevant. Families might be offered discounted tickets to a local theme park, while couples could receive an invitation to a private wine-tasting event (Canary HMS).

So it makes sense that AI is being used in the study of hospitality, says University of Florida professor Rachel J.C. Fu. Hospitality is a term to describe businesses like hotels, restaurants, tourism and event planning. AI can be used to rapidly go through voluminous amounts of data to extract important conclusions about customers, or potential customers. The information provided in the download document is drafted for hotel executives and technology leaders involved in hotel AI solutions. Marco Correia of Mercan Properties shared how AI is transforming their marketing strategies.

This proactive approach not only reduces repair costs but also minimizes guest inconvenience and potential negative reviews. Additionally, AI is streamlining back-office operations such as invoice processing, inventory ordering, and maintenance scheduling. A study of hotels using AI for ChatGPT App operational automation showed an average reduction in administrative costs of 20%, with some properties reporting savings of up to 40%. A boutique hotel group found that implementing AI for staff scheduling resulted in a 12% reduction in labor costs without compromising service quality.

What are some common AI-driven guest service applications in hotels?

It is one of the most vital use cases of AI in hospitality that also adds a layer of proactive monitoring that can help prevent incidents before they escalate, thereby maintaining a safe and secure environment. AI-driven solutions allow hotels to predict guest preferences, personalize communications, and manage in-house services more effectively, all of which contribute to a superior guest experience and increased operational productivity. Beyond enhancing the guest experience, AI is also transforming the inner workings of hotels. Numerous AI-powered apps are now available to assist with staff scheduling, work management, and performance monitoring, leading to improved communication and efficiency across departments.

Get in touch to equip your hospitality business with software that meets current technological standards and sets new benchmarks for personalized service. Integrating new AI technologies with existing hotel management systems can be complex and may disrupt current operations. Maintaining the essential personal touch in guest interactions while implementing AI can be tricky, as over-reliance on automation may lead to a less personal guest experience. The initial costs of artificial intelligence in the hospitality industry, which include purchasing, integrating, and training, can be high, discouraging some hotel businesses from adopting it. The hospitality sector, which is always a step ahead when it comes to redefining “comfort and luxury” for its users, the adoption of AI is fundamentally transforming the very notion of hospitality.

AI-driven marketing across platforms like Google and Meta can also optimize ad reach by targeting specific audiences and creating look-alike models to attract similar potential guests. This strategy has become smarter, faster, and more accessible for hotels of all sizes, not just those with large budgets. Connecting the dots and coupling first-party data with the right marketing and media strategies allows hoteliers to find new guests, drive them book direct, and grow revenue.

At the University of Florida, there is an Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics program for hospitality and event management. It requires students to take three classes covering the use of artificial intelligence and data collection in tourism and hospitality. For her final research paper, Malone talked with nine top hotel business managers about AI.

The initial focus of the tool will be on the ‘dreaming phase’ of travel, helping users find inspiration for their trips. Built using Google’s Vertex AI and Gemini model, the tool aims to offer personalized recommendations and integrate third-party services for a comprehensive travel planning experience. This shift represents more than just a technological upgrade; it’s a paradigm shift in how hotels operate. AI will fundamentally change how hotels engage with guests, manage operations, and drive revenue.

Engagement: Co-Creating the Future of Hospitality

This holistic approach is a major evolution for us and something we’re incredibly excited about. As technologies continue to evolve, I boldly predict AI-driven solutions will become integral to every aspect of maximizing cash flow. Chatbots that express humanlike emotions will become standard, providing instant, personalized engagement with guests during check-in or when the need arises. IHG’s partnership with Apple, Amadeus, PPDS, Groups360, and other leading technology solution providers has been key to implementing these next-generation cloud solutions. Are you prepared to lead your hotel into a blue ocean where AI and humans together create extraordinary experiences and new levels of profitability? Hilton’s Connie, an AI-powered robot concierge, is an excellent example of AI in action.

In one vision of the future, tech giants like Apple will apply generative AI to all of a person’s personal data on their phones. Gen AI will allow them to make more relevant travel recommendations than other companies. Many execs at hotels and online travel agencies are playing a fun game called «Guess How AI Will Disrupt Us Before It Actually Does.» According to the agreement, Karisma will use Sofia to bolster the hotel group’s customer service capabilities through enhanced chatbot functionalities.

Today’s podcast looks at the ups and downs of the global hotel industry’s year, Priceline’s new AI integration, and Klook’s plans for the next ten years. To mark this milestone, Vouch is offering a free trial of its AI-powered solutions throughout October. With AI handling sensitive guest ChatGPT information, ensuring robust data privacy and security is crucial to maintaining trust. To explore the IHG Hotels & Resorts global brands or book your next stay, download the IHG One Rewards App. » Additional features will launch in the months following the Travel Planner’s public launch.

Hotels that follow this collaborative approach will find smoother transitions and less resistance to AI adoption. The question has shifted from «if» AI will become a cornerstone of hotel operations to «when» it will be fully integrated. In an era of rapid technological advancement and evolving consumer expectations, the hotel industry stands at a crossroads.

Karisma Hotels & Resorts is an industry innovator and award-winning luxury hotel collection renowned for its premier guest experiences. By integrating our AI Travel Assistant, Sofia, we will not only deepen our collaboration with a valued partner but also position Karisma at the forefront of technological innovation in the hospitality industry. As we move forward, we’re eager to explore new ways to enhance Karisma’s travel assistant, expanding its capabilities to offer even more value to travelers,” commented Damian Scokin, CEO of Despegar.

The traditional divisions between sales, marketing, and revenue management are becoming more integrated, which reflects a deeper understanding of their interdependence. At Cendyn, we’ve responded to this by offering solutions that address these areas holistically. Our focus is not just on individual strategies but on a comprehensive commercial strategy that drives tangible results, whether increasing revenue, building an email list, or improving return on ad spend.

It adjusts various settings such as lighting, climate, and service offerings based on the personal preferences of guests, which the system learns over time. This personalized approach ensures that each guest’s experience is unique and luxurious, reflecting the high standards of the Ritz-Carlton brand. Marriott International leverages “Marriott’s Dynamic Pricing Engine,” an AI-driven system that dynamically adjusts room rates to optimize revenue. This system analyzes real-time data on market demand, local events, and other critical factors, allowing Marriott to offer competitive pricing while maximizing occupancy. The technology ensures that pricing strategies are responsive to changing market conditions, providing a strategic advantage in a highly competitive industry. This simplifies the booking experience and also optimizes occupancy rates and revenue by dynamically adjusting offers and promotions in real-time to fill rooms more efficiently.

Coming to Deloitte’s latest European Hospitality Industry Conference survey, 52% of customers expect generative AI to be used for customer interactions, and 44% foresee its use in guest engagement. Navigating these themes is crucial for augmenting AI with the human element, steering the hospitality industry towards a future enhanced by exceptional guest experiences and operational excellence. Last September, for example, the company announced the launch of a reimagined digital booking experience for its guests. The enhanced booking experience allows guests to select individual room attributes and personalize their stays with various enhancements. To date, more than 5,000 hotels offer guests the ability to choose the room attributes that matter most to them. Integration of AI tools across all hotel operations will create a cohesive and efficient ecosystem.

Vouch has also integrated AI into its backend task management system, enabling hotels to automate routine tasks and streamline workflows for greater efficiency. From automating housekeeping tasks to managing maintenance requests, hotels can now enhance operational efficiency, freeing up staff to focus on delivering exceptional guest experiences. AI can analyze guest preferences and behaviors to create personalized marketing messages and promotions for customers. Chatbots can provide 24/7 customer service, handling everything from reservation inquiries to immediate on-site needs. This helps improve the responsiveness of guest services while also freeing up human staff to handle more complex guest interactions.

This isn’t about playing catch-up; it’s about leading a wave of innovation that redefines luxury, convenience, and personalization. As the hospitality industry navigates the digital age, the integration of AI provides a golden opportunity for hotels to enhance their ROI through automation, augmentation, and analysis. By performing a thorough assumption-implication analysis—focusing on risk-return, target customers, and business scope—hotels can make informed decisions about how to integrate AI into their operations.

By utilizing AI for content creation and optimization, Mercan has significantly enhanced its SEO and PPC efforts, driving better engagement and higher conversion rates. The AI upgrades will be released through Opera Cloud Central, the multi-system hotel tech platform that the company began selling in the last year. The system was an expansion of the Opera Cloud property management system that was released five years ago.

This approach allows hotels and travel companies to optimize revenue while offering competitive prices to customers, enhancing the attractiveness of their services. Automation can create seamless guest experiences (e.g., automated check-ins and smart room controls), while Augmentation ensures that human staff can focus on high-value interactions. Analysis of customer data helps hotels segment their audience and provide personalized services to tech-savvy and traditional guests alike. AI-driven dynamic pricing tools analyze vast amounts of data, including occupancy rates, market demand, competitor pricing, and even weather forecasts, to adjust room prices in real-time. This helps in maximizing revenue while also ensuring pricing competitiveness in the market. By dynamically pricing rooms, hotels can optimize their revenue management strategies, attract more bookings, and adjust quickly to changing market conditions.

• These hotels may worry about losing personal touch or facing unforeseen operational challenges.
• One of the most impactful applications of AI in hospitality is in the realm of preventive maintenance.
• AI can process and analyze this data to provide actionable insights that drive both short-term wins and long-term strategies.
• For the travel industry overall, we see the most potential for generative AI to … make every part of the travel experience feel tailor-made, from start to finish.
• This approach would transform the workforce into a hotbed of innovation, with housekeepers potentially becoming AI workflow designers, and receptionists evolving into natural language processing experts.

A. Artificial intelligence in the hospitality industry refers to the use of artificial intelligence technologies to enhance the guest experience and improve operational efficiencies within the hospitality sector. This enhances the guest experience and frees human staff to focus on more complex tasks, such as handling unexpected issues, complaints or emergencies. AI can assist in identifying problems, but human staff are needed to offer strategies for planning, professional development and risk management. The hospitality industry has long been defined by its ability to deliver exceptional guest experiences, combining personal touches with efficiency.

This feature is part of a suite of new offerings set to launch in the latter half of this year, aimed at creating a more dynamic digital guest experience. The AI in Hospitality and Travel event underscored the transformative potential of AI in addressing the hospitality industry’s pain points. With current implementations already making significant impacts on operations and guest experiences, the future looks promising.

Google famously encourages employees to spend about one day per week experimenting with tech. Sabre doesn’t have anything that formal, Wilson said, but its couple of hackathon events each year are meant to encourage innovation. By the time of the release, the tool’s answers were accurate around 93% of the time, he claimed chatbot for hotels – though Skift hasn’t tested the product. The AI comes from Sabre’s ongoing partnership with Google, which has developed the Gemini generative AI model. Instead of feeling overwhelmed, adopt a mindset of excitement and opportunity, recognizing that AI’s rapid evolution is a gateway to innovation and a brighter future.

The initial challenges involved reducing the workload of front-office teams while enhancing efficiency and service quality for an improved guest experience. You can foun additiona information about ai customer service and artificial intelligence and NLP. From increasing direct bookings by 25% with AI-powered chatbots to reducing energy consumption by 40%, these AI tools are already helping hotels achieve incredible results. As we venture further into 2024, the hospitality industry is poised for a seismic shift, driven by the integration of AI.

AI in Hospitality: More Than Just Automation

This example highlights the ethical application of AI in balancing operational efficiency with guest satisfaction and environmental responsibility. IHG has also invested in rebuilding each hotel’s website, recognizing that 40% of website traffic originates from these platforms. With over 80% of IHG hotels already boasting a new website, IHG continues its commitment to fully showcase the diverse offerings available to guests across its 19 brands. Google Cloud’s approach to cybersecurity, data governance, and privacy allows IHG to retain control over its data and ensures data and applications meet compliance and security standards, a key priority for IHG.

If they permit their data to be shared, a hotel might know the visitor’s favorite meal or drink and have it ready when they arrive. Fu told VOA you can already see AI and robots being used in the hospitality business “quite a lot.” For example, airlines use AI to deal with customer service and airports use AI to manage cleaning work. Related Buyer’s Guides which cover an extensive range of hotel solutions, systems providers and technology, can also be found here. Artificial intelligence (AI) is playing an increasingly critical role in the hotel industry, primarily to carry out routine human tasks. This can potentially save hotel owners money, eliminate the risk of human error, and deliver better service. Oracle is integrating the latest AI into its hotel tech and other parts of the company, but it’s a long process, Calin said.

Despite this shift, hotel chains that leverage brand recognition continue to secure more direct customers. Robots might not be taking over the world of hospitality, but they’re certainly checking us in to our hotels. Will AI be rated as the best concierge we’ve ever had, or will guests still desire a human touch?

Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing hotel loyalty programs by offering hyper-personalized rewards and experiences. By analyzing guest data, AI can predict which perks and offers are most likely to resonate with individual members, increasing program engagement and repeat bookings. The chatbot is designed to be user-friendly, enabling even those with limited technical expertise to utilise the tool effectively. It can be used across various hotel operations, including sales, marketing, and distribution strategies, to apply the insights gained from the data.

The system’s ability to predict staffing needs with precision allowed for better resource allocation and improved employee satisfaction through more consistent work hours. For instance, a midsize hotel in New York City reported a 15% increase in RevPAR within six months of implementing an AI-driven pricing system. This boost in revenue came not just from higher rates during peak times, but also from filling rooms that might have otherwise gone vacant during slower periods. Amadeus has announced a partnership with Microsoft to introduce an AI-powered chatbot designed to revolutionise the way hoteliers access and interpret business intelligence data. In this article, we’ll explore how AI is driving return on investment (ROI) for hotels by focusing on the three A’s—Automate, Augment, and Analyze. We will also conduct an assumption-implication analysis covering risk-return assessments, target customers, and business scope.

This approach to reputation management can significantly enhance guest satisfaction and loyalty. AI-driven data analytics tools will be used to process vast amounts of operational data in real time. This can lead to significant cost savings and a smoother operation that consistently meets guests’ needs. AI-based concierge apps or software have the power to transform guest service by providing instant, accurate information and personalized recommendations. These AI systems learn from each interaction, continuously improving to offer guests dining options, local attractions, and customized hotel services.