At ITB Berlin, we flipped the script—this time, Hospitality Net"s Simone Puorto found himself in the hot seat, answering the very question he posed to exhibitors and attendees: "What will be the single biggest impact of AI on hospitality?"

For Puorto, the answer is twofold. First, he envisions a future without Excel files and static reports, where data is no longer something you have to dig through but something that talks back to you. Imagine waking up, asking a conversational AI platform about your hotel"s performance, and receiving an instant, insightful response—without the need for complex BI tools or manual analysis.

Second, he predicts the rise of digital workers and AI-powered agents, both on the traveler side and within hotel operations. These agents won"t just automate processes; they"ll actively shape the guest experience, handling bookings, check-ins, and more, just as AI is already revolutionizing e-commerce and logistics. While hospitality may not yet reach Amazon"s level—where a third of the workforce is already non-human—Puorto believes it"s only a matter of time before AI-driven automation plays a central role in hotel operations.

The takeaway? AI in hospitality won"t just improve efficiency—it will fundamentally change how hotels interact with data, guests, and even their own workforce. And if Puorto"s track record of predictions is any indication, this future might arrive sooner than we think.