I read: “Accor leads hospitality innovation with the launch of its ALL Accor app in ChatGPT.”
And for once, I actually agree with our French cousins.
In my last book, published a couple of years ago, I wrote:
“We’ve built platforms that aggregate other platforms, which in turn aggregate even more platforms. With over a billion websites and nine million apps — not even counting wearables, gaming consoles, and IoT devices — the digital world is overdue for a shift. A transformation toward a web where decision-making and interaction are simplified, and ultimately more aligned with how humans think and converse.”
It seems the market is finally catching up.
I’ve been saying this for years: websites, booking engines, and apps are NOT the product. They never were. They’re just interfaces — and very temporary ones at that. Cognitive prosthetics that exist only until someone invents something less painful.
And that “something” is now conversation.
The post-website, post-IBE, post-app world isn’t a world without infrastructure.
It’s a world where infrastructure becomes invisible. It just works.
No one asks “Where do I click?” anymore.
They say: “I want to go to Paris for three nights — and I don’t want to deal with pop-ups.”
ChatGPT — and whatever comes next — marks the end of the (often grotesque) theater of interaction.
Those who win won’t be the ones with the prettiest website — whatever that even means.
They’ll be the ones with clean, structured, accessible data.
Accor gets it.
Not because they love AI, but because they hate friction — and they don’t want to be left behind by OTAs.
Meanwhile, we’re still debating the color of the “Book Now” button.
While the button itself is disappearing.
Post-website doesn’t mean post-brand.
It means post-friction.
And it’s only scary if you’re still in love with your homepage.
See you next week,
Simone
SIMONE PUORTO
