Innovation

🦋 The FDA approved three natural food colorants, phasing out petroleum-based dyes between 2026-2028. The approved colorants are Galdieria blue, butterfly pea extract, and calcium phosphate. This follows the ban of nine artificial food dyes linked to health risks by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The FDA plans to authorize four more natural additives soon, as stated by FDA commissioner Dr. Martin A. Makary. Galdieria extract blue is now approved for a wide range of foods and beverages, butterfly pea flower extract can be used in additional snack items, and calcium phosphate is approved for certain confections and ready-to-eat chicken.

🚲 DoorDash, a $40 billion third-party delivery service, is acquiring SevenRooms, a customer relationship management business. This deal aims to create a comprehensive platform, akin to Amazon Prime's all-in-one service, and raises concerns over data control and restaurant brand commoditization. Experts like Toby W. Malbec from Church’s Texas Chicken and Robert Peterson from Oracle Restaurants discuss possible benefits and warn of potential threats, such as the misuse of aggregated customer data by DoorDash. Restaurants are advised to audit their tech stacks, read contracts carefully, maintain system flexibility, and demand open APIs to protect their customer relationships.

💰 In London, on May 12, 2025, eviivo enhanced its integration with PayPal, allowing hospitality businesses to offer flexible payments and reduce transaction failures, potentially increasing transaction completion by 62%. The integration includes PayPal's Advanced Checkout and Payment Manager, offering various payment options like Buy Now Pay Later, card processing, and mobile payments. Security features include AI-powered fraud detection and PayPal Seller Protection. Eviivo, serving over 28,000 hospitality businesses, simplifies property management and guest engagement.

🚧 Louvre Hotels Group, with over 1,700 hotels globally, has chosen RobosizeME to automate voucher reconciliation, a task previously consuming hundreds of hours a month. In Prague, on 12 May 2025, this partnership was announced, aimed at enhancing efficiency and accuracy by reducing manual work and human error. François Couturier of Louvre Hotels Group highlights the shift of team efforts to strategic activities, while RobosizeME CEO Stephen Burke emphasizes the impact of AI and automation in hospitality. RobosizeME offers AI-driven automation solutions for the hotel industry with a focus on reservation, finance, distribution, and front office workflows, boasting certifications like ISO 27001 and GDPR compliance.

🎵 Nearly 72% of hotel guests notice music playing, and sales can increase by over 37% when the music aligns with the brand. The right music sets the tone in hospitality, influencing guest experiences more than decor. Establishing a "sonic identity" helps venues create the desired atmosphere. Hospitality brands can choose global consistency, local flexibility, or full local autonomy for music management. Modern technology offers efficient, scalable solutions for maintaining an engaging and consistent sound environment.

📱 In the latest edition, AI concierges like Bella surprise guests with birthday cakes, mystery flights lead to unexpected destinations, and solopreneurs create million-dollar startups. Shopify mandates AI usage for all employees, with expectations of boosting productivity 10x-100x. Fintechs are tapping into eSIMs for seamless global connectivity, providing new revenue streams and enhancing user engagement. The importance of customer discovery in Lean Startup remains essential, despite AI accelerating development. Stay22 enables 3x-10x revenue boosts by linking travel content to monetization. The Hotels Network joins Lighthouse to further power direct bookings and personalized experiences. Scandinavian Airlines offers mystery flights to destinations like Athens and Seville. Over 1,119 travel tech roles are available on the Travel Tech Essentialist Job Board, with positions like Senior Director at Expedia in Washington DC or Seattle, offering a salary ranging from $296,000-414,500 per year.

📦 Real Time Ordering, Platinum Relations, and National Computer Corporation launched RTO Tableside Order and Pay, integrating with restaurants' POS systems for direct kitchen communication and payment processing via PAX A77 devices. It offers Wi-Fi and 4G connectivity, supporting various industry use cases, with the added benefit of increased server productivity and faster table turns. Available now in the U.S. and Canada, the solution is offered as a low monthly subscription.

🍴 Real Time Ordering, Platinum Relations, and National Computer Corporation launched RTO Tableside Order and Pay solutions for restaurants. This technology integrates with NCC's Reflection POS systems, allowing servers to send orders directly to the kitchen and process payments using PAX A77 handheld devices with Wi-Fi and 4G connectivity. RTO Tableside facilitates seamless transactions, improves server productivity, controls labor costs, and accelerates table turn rates. Available in the U.S. and Canada, it offers a modern service for a low monthly subscription.

📱 Real Time Ordering, Platinum Relations, and National Computer Corporation launched RTO Tableside Order and Pay solutions, integrating with restaurants' Reflection POS systems for direct kitchen communication and on-the-spot payment processing via NETePay Hosted. Utilizing the PAX A77 device, the solutions offer Wi-Fi and 4G connectivity, applicable for multiple service types, such as QSRs, food trucks, and full-service dining. Available now in the U.S. and Canada, it promises increased server productivity and faster table turnover for a monthly subscription fee.