Innovation

SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Canary Technologies, the award-winning global leader in hotel guest management technology, today announced that GreenStar Hotels has selected Canary’s suite of hospitality technology solutions to modernize operations and elevate the guest experience across its portfolio. GreenStar Hotels is Finland’s first carbon-neutral hotel chain and operates five hotels across the country. Known for combining environmentally responsible hospitality with affordability and comfort, the company has built a distinctive brand around sustainable travel. By adopting Canary’s solutions, GreenStar is enhancing the guest journey while empowering staff with modern, digital-first tools. GreenStar Hotels is providing exceptional hospitality by using technology that further advances their mission. GreenStar has built something distinctive: hospitality that’s both responsible and exceptional. Canary gives their team the tools to deepen guest connections, unlock new revenue, spend less time on manual tasks and invest time in the moments that matter. Manuel de la Torre, Head of Sales EMEA at Canary Technologies GreenStar Hotels has deployed a suite of Canary solutions across key guest touchpoints. Guests can check in and check out digitally, communicate with the hotel instantly in 100+ languages via AI Guest Messaging, access property information through Canary’s Digital Compendium, and recognize staff with Digital Tipping. Canary’s Dynamic Upsells surface relevant add-ons at the right moment, driving ancillary revenue while keeping the experience seamless. At GreenStar Hotels, we are always looking for ways to improve the guest experience while staying true to our commitment to sustainable hospitality. Canary’s technology helps us create a more convenient, connected guest experience while enabling our teams to operate more efficiently. We believe this investment will help us continue raising the standard for modern, responsible hospitality. Harri Nevalainen, Business Director at GreenStar Hotels

There’s a growing assumption in hospitality that AI is replacing search. If AI rises, search must fall. But this zero-sum mindset isn’t reality. Instead of replacing search, AI is expanding it. And it has the power to supercharge every hotel’s Find, Book, and Grow strategy too. The problem isn’t that search is disappearing. It’s that we’re still thinking about it in the old way. Search used to be a moment: type, click, compare, book. Now, it’s a process. Travelers ask, refine, challenge, and explore. The shift isn’t from search to AI. It’s from search as a single action, to search as a continuous, AI-powered exploratory experience. And for hoteliers, that changes everything about how demand is captured. It’s no longer just about ranking high enough to be seen. It’s about being relevant enough to stay in the conversation, or join in the conversation as the traveler’s inquiry evolves. Search is becoming AI-native The first flaw in the AI versus search narrative is thinking of it as an either/or situation. But search isn’t being disrupted from the outside; it’s being rebuilt from within. Instead of competing with AI, Google is embedding it across the entire search experience. This comes to life in AI Overviews, conversational results, real-time queries handled by Search Live, and multimodal queries that combine text, voice, and images. Search is evolving from keywords to conversations, links to synthesized answers, and queries to ongoing dialogue. We know that travelers are no longer just typing “best hotels in Barcelona.” They’re saying: “Which boutique hotels in Barcelona have quiet rooms and great breakfast nearby?” “Compare options for a 3-night stay in May under €400 per night.” “Give me a list of hotels suitable for wheelchair users.” Search is becoming more powerful with AI, making it better equipped to understand more conversational search behavior. AI is increasing search volume, not reducing it One of the biggest misconceptions is that AI reduces the need to search. But we’re seeing the opposite happening. Google search grew 20%+ post-AI rollout and search impressions grew by approximately 49%. Yes, more searches now end without clicks; the so-called zero-click rate is approximately 58–60%. But that doesn’t mean less search activity. It means value is being captured differently. The significant growth in search volume and impressions is happening because AI lowers the barrier to asking questions. Search is turning into a conversation, made up of multiple follow-up questions. A traveler might start with “best hotels in Rome.” Then they’ll refine with questions such as: “Which ones are good for families with young children?” “Do any have connecting rooms and a pool?” “What’s available for next weekend under €500?” What used to be one search is many searches, with refinement loops encouraged by AI search. This is how search is multiplying before our eyes. For hoteliers, this means every follow-up is a new chance to be surfaced or dropped. Your amenities, room types, availability, and pricing all need to be structured cleanly enough to answer each refinement, not just