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SOCIETIES Q1 2026 Spotlights Google AI Travel Planning, Guerlain’s Waldorf Astoria Spa, and the Rise of Design-Driven Hospitality

The new issue examines the shifts already shaping luxury hospitality, from AI-powered trip planning and AI’s growing role as back-end service infrastructure to the rise of design-led independent ... Sébastien Felix, Founder & CEO of Influence Society Key themes highlighted in the Q1 2026 edition include: AI is becoming the invisible infrastructure of travel.

Hospitality Does Not Have a Labour Shortage — It Has a Visibility Problem: A Conversation with Paathz at ITB Berlin

AI as a tool, not a hiring manager Ayush was clear on where AI belongs in this process and where it does not. Matching, scanning, surfacing relevant candidates: all appropriate uses of AI. ... The value of AI is in removing the noise so that the human judgement at the end of the process is better informed and more efficiently reached.

When ChatGPT Can Prove Your Hotel Is Clean: A Conversation with Valpas at ITB Berlin

Valpas technology prevents bedbugs in real-time and provides verified cleanliness data that ChatGPT can now access for hotel recommendations. ... How travelers search for hotels has permanently changed The shift to AI-assisted hotel discovery is well underway. What is less discussed is how far beyond price and location those searches now go.

The Invisible Cost of Comfort

The same psychology applies in hotels, particularly in the upper-upscale and luxury segments, where overt operational charges can feel at odds with brand positioning. ... Logistics optimization can reduce transport inefficiencies that increasingly drive cost pressures on restaurants and hotels alike. In that sense, AI becomes less about delight and more about defense.

Booked in Seconds, Inside ChatGPT: A Conversation with Apaleo at ITB Berlin

Apaleo's founder demonstrates live hotel booking through ChatGPT, with 15-20 hotel groups already deploying AI agents in production. ... At ITB Berlin, Simone Puorto spoke with Uli Pillau, Founder of Apaleo, about open platforms, what agentic AI actually means in practice, and why the hotels moving fastest on this are not the large chains

How modern hotel technology solutions create a connected booking journey

And with AI integration , you have the upper hand in making your data work for you with real-time insights ready when you need it. ... Practical steps for hotels wanting a smoother guest booking journey Map the current booking path from a guest point of view The best place to start is by putting yourself in the shoes of your guests and

Be Brave: A Conversation with Infor at ITB Berlin

At ITB Berlin, Simone Puorto spoke with David Poprawka, Innovation Strategist for Hospitality at Infor, about augmented reality in hotel operations, why the industry has failed AI more than AI has failed ... They will be built, together with operators, in the doing. His framing: in 2026, every company is a startup, regardless of how long it has been in the market. AI is not failing hospitality.