Innovation

📈 Leaders from CPG brands, ingredient companies, and food-tech startups discussed predictive AI in food innovation at FutureFWD. By 2030, AI will predict demand, shape ingredients, and speed up product development. Using AI Palette’s intelligence, the panel explored AI’s role in identifying trends, enhancing formulations, and targeting product launches, highlighting how data-driven decisions will shape future diets and help brands reduce risk, innovate rapidly, and meet evolving consumer preferences.

🗺️ CodeGen is the first enterprise travel platform to offer all operations via Model Context Protocols (MCPs). Initially created for an airline client, MCPs now facilitate seamless integration with systems like Amadeus PSS, enhancing real-time flight access. This innovation cuts integration time and costs, allowing travel agencies easy access to airline inventory without complex NDC integrations. MCP servers for TravelBox streamline connectivity and enhance workflow, reducing development time and costs for users.

💻 Dec 17, 2025, The Future Laboratory reports that for 2026, hotels must enhance guest experiences by aligning people, systems, and sensory design. Successful integration of digital infrastructure with human services enhances recognition and empathy. Prioritizing connection, reducing technological complexity, and valuing genuine storytelling over luxury are key. Cross-department collaboration in hotels is essential for delivering consistent guest experiences. Investing in empathetic and connected systems now equips hotels for evolving guest expectations.

📲 DoorDash is piloting "Zesty," an AI-powered app for personalized restaurant discovery, in San Francisco and New York City. Available on iOS, it allows users to search with specific prompts, such as "cozy pasta spots on the Lower East Side under $100" and integrates data from DoorDash, Google Maps, and TikTok. Announced by founder Andy Fang, Zesty is part of DoorDash's September suite of innovations, including delivery robots and smart scales.

📅 Duetto will host its first global summit, PERFORM, on April 16, 2026, at Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort, Florida. This event will focus on revenue and profit performance for the hotel industry, featuring global industry leaders and technology partners. Attendees will access thought leadership, interactive workshops, and Duetto’s product insights. The summit aims to address the shift in hospitality strategy towards total revenue and profitability, drawing a global audience for networking and knowledge sharing.

By Stephen Burke, Founder & CEO, RobosizeME I bet you didn’t get into hospitality to chase spreadsheets. And yet, for years, I watched talented revenue managers, finance analysts and operations…

💻 Langham Hospitality Group, as of 2025, is deploying AI tools across 31 hotels globally, covering brands like The Langham, Cordis, Eaton Workshop, and Ying’nFlo. The tools, launched after previous tech investments, support guest inquiries via text, offer staff operational data access, and analyze booking data for commercial decisions. Langham's CEO, Bob van den Oord, emphasizes these tools enhance guest care and decision-making by adapting to modern information access trends.

📅 In 2025, a GlobalData survey highlighted that nearly 33% of travelers consider personalisation crucial for travel purchases. AI-driven hyper-personalisation is transforming the industry, with features like eSIMs and real-time itinerary adjustments. Technologies such as deep learning models and conversational tools enhance customer experiences. Collaboration across the travel sector, including in payment methods like Alipay and GrabPay, is vital. The future of travel is predicted to be hyper-personalised, hyper-local, and AI-powered.

📑 Shahar Goldboim and Arthur Colker announced Boom's integration with StayFi, launched in December 2025. Boom, the AI-powered property management system, partners with StayFi to convert guest WiFi logins into marketing insights. This integration automates guest data processing, enhancing property managers' marketing strategies. In October, Boom secured $12.7 million from Avenue Growth Partners for global growth. The collaboration enhances guest data usage without manual efforts, improving guest communication and boosting revenue.

🌐 Ubico, part of World2Meet (W2M), is partnering with Acai Travel to integrate AI into its travel management services. Initially rolled out in Ubico's Microsoft Dynamics-based CRM, the AI-powered Agentic API aims to enhance support efficiency. This partnership, starting in 2026, supports Ubico's strategy of reducing traditional workflows and improving scalable, human-centric service delivery. The initiative is part of a broader group-wide strategy to incorporate AI across W2M's corporate, leisure, and wholesale operations.