Technology

The age of the hotel brand is ending. For decades, franchises have scaled by selling sameness, consistency over individuality. AI breaks that logic. AI reshapes the vectors of discovery. Instead of guests defaulting to familiar logos or loyalty programs, intelligent systems surface the properties that best match a traveler's needs, preferences, and context.

This is part of a bigger question, I think. As a marketing guy, let me explain it through distribution, using Booking.com as the example. Booking spends billions on advertising, dominates search, builds the user experience that has become the industry template, and runs a multilingual customer service that often outperforms independent hotels.

Yes. It's not limited to franchises and is a pretty long standing clause in agreements. There largely because it was not as prominent a consideration back in the day from a data and technology perspective - harder to get data out of a peice of on premise technology that the owner paid for.

About 18 months ago, some people on LinkedIn touted that Conversational Interfaces would kill off websites. Current status? Tumbleweed. Visuals sell things, text supports. Websites enable owners to portray their brand and products/services as they see fit.

The rapid advancement of AI, especially agentic technologies, is fundamentally changing hotel distribution and guest engagement. Recent data shows that only about 25% of AI-generated hotel information now comes from hotel websites; the rest is sourced from OTAs, public databases, and proprietary data.

I don't believe AI will make hotel websites obsolete. If we learn anything from the past, every obstacle creates opportunity. Technology's direction isn't a single script; there are multiple paths and approaches. Where a problem needs to be solved, a tool will emerge to solve it.

What's always amazed me is the lack of real-time coordination between the hotel and dining teams in terms of already knowing guest preferences the moment they identify themselves at the restaurant host station. Precisely because there isn't typically quick coordination between these two silos, that leaves a ton of room for wow moments that technology can execute in an automated, scalable and real-time manner.

Seamless Data: The Truth About Why Your Organization Isn't There Yet In the dynamic landscape of hospitality, the growing momentum towards unified hotel technology and seamless data flow across departments and guest touchpoints is undeniable.

The idea of crafting experiences around a centralized, real-time guest profile represents more than a technical upgrade; it signals a paradigm shift. We are moving from an analog conception of hospitality to a computational one, where data no longer serves the experience but is the experience.

Our work with clients on personalization is rooted in the fundamental view that we've always aimed to better match what we have to offer with what a guest truly desires. This is particularly crucial when a property offers a diverse range of products beyond just rooms, where strategic personalization can genuinely elevate the guest's enjoyment by more accurately aligning offerings with their individual preferences.

The real threat today isn't personalization creating an echo chamber, it's hotels failing to meet the expectations of generations raised on TikTok, Spotify, and Instagram. Gen Alpha and Gen Z aren't marveling at algorithmic recommendations; they expect them.

Let's be blunt: most hotels haven't even reached personalization, let alone hyperpersonalization. And while Booking.com, Netflix, and Amazon are masters of knowing what you want before you do, many hotels still worship the PMS like it's the digital holy grail.

All-in-one, hands down. Advantages are: Fewer vendors to talk to, saving time Fewer dashboards to look at, preventing dashboard fatigue Fewer interfaces to maintain Better data streaming (not guaranteed though) Steamlined billing There are exceptions to this, especially for emerging categories, but in a world of "satisficing", keeping it simple rules the day.

A very topical question which also came up at the HFTP Barcelona CIO Summit recently. There was no single answer as it will always depend on the particular situation. For a small hotel/BnB, a combo PMS/POS/IBE product like Avon Data, Heart or BookAssist may suffice and would do a very good job.

In a word, yes. All the major players in industry are working towards a hospitality 'platform' solution. Yes, you may be able to purchase the pieces separately, which is purely commercial. But they are designed and intended to support across business operations.

"Hand-thought is the new hand-built. In luxury, human-curated service — powered by AI — is the next premium." The CIO role has moved far beyond infrastructure. We’re no longer just maintaining networks — we’re shaping the future of the guest experience.

"Forget the hype — the true power of AI lies in the back office, not in guest-facing gimmicks." Technology has become central to our business planning. IT is no longer a support function — it’s a strategic pillar. I’m increasingly involved in shaping commercial roadmaps, evaluating distribution platforms, and making long-term investment decisions.

Every department is becoming its own tech expert — our job is to enable, not dictate." We’re witnessing a cultural shift in how technology is adopted within hospitality businesses. End users are increasingly tech-literate — they’re evaluating tools on their own, consulting peers, and coming to IT with clear preferences.

We focus on using technology to create seamless and personalised guest experiences while also improving performance. One example is how guests can easily add extras such as late checkout or breakfast directly from their phone at check-in.

One simple example that recently impressed me was receiving a WhatsApp message allowing me to check in online. It was seamless and aligned with what many guests now expect. In fact, we know that around 63 percent of millennials prefer the option to check in online.

At Staypineapple, we use Mews across all of our properties and have started incorporating AI to help us better understand our guests before they arrive. We combine this with other data—like reviews and past preferences—to build a more complete picture of who is staying with us.