Innovation

🏗️ New Murabba, a PIF company, partners with South Korea's NAVER Cloud for a 14 sq km urban project in Riyadh, KSA. The three-year agreement focuses on tech and automation, with New Murabba's CEO Michael Dyke emphasizing its role in Vision 2030. The project will create 300,000 jobs, featuring 100,000 residential units, 10,000 hotel rooms, and The Mukaab. A forum in Seoul with over 500 delegates explores tech and investment opportunities. 🏗️

💻 RateGain and Cloudbeds have partnered to enhance hotel distribution strategies using AI. Integrating RateGain’s UNO Channel Manager with Cloudbeds’ property management system, the collaboration allows management of rates, inventory, and reservations across 400+ channels. The AI-powered system reduces manual labor and overbookings. Cloudbeds’ PMS optimizes costs, staff, and profitability, while Cloudbeds Intelligence provides decision-making advantages. Bhanu Chopra (RateGain) and Adam Harris (Cloudbeds) highlight the partnership's potential for unlocking global revenue opportunities.

💼 June 2025, global. STAAH updates its Channel Manager and Booking Engine for enhanced usability. The Channel Manager now features a redesigned Mapping Details Page with improved integration categories. The Booking Engine introduces a Discount Ribbon for promotional packages, meal icons, and a strikethrough on base rates for discounts. New language translation options have been added. Integrations include Odeon Tours, MIPS, and Zuba, expanding service offerings across 90 destinations and 40 countries.

🍴 Major culinary cities like Singapore, Bangkok, and Hong Kong are witnessing a transformative shift in the F&B industry due to evolving consumer preferences, market saturation, and global inflation. Meanwhile, emerging destinations with lower entry barriers and rising affluence offer new opportunities for innovation. A panel featuring Sameer Seth, Stefanie Wijono, and Sarissa Rodriguez-Schwartz, moderated by Nicola Lee, will explore these challenges and opportunities in a session focused on Asia's F&B future.

💻 Lufthansa leveraged conversational agentic AI during the COVID-19 pandemic to manage surging inquiries. AI agents handle tasks autonomously, like rebooking flights and processing refunds, reducing human workload. These agents, integrated with backend systems, manage over 16 million conversations annually, offering multilingual support and real-time translation. This technology enhances customer service by providing real-time issue resolution and personalized trip planning, proving more efficient than traditional chatbots and call centers.

💳 Visa predicts cross-border payments will hit $250 trillion by 2027. In 2023, ISO 20022 standardized payments, enhancing transparency and security. Visa's survey of 6,500 consumers revealed 67% make monthly e-commerce purchases, 52% travel more than once a year, and 45% send/receive remittances monthly. 71% want payment guidance, with security as a major concern. Swift's GPI and distributed ledger technologies boost cross-border payment efficiency. CBDCs are gaining traction, monitored in 130 countries, covering 98% of global GDP.

📅 Casago acquires Vacasa, expanding its portfolio to over 40,000 vacation rentals across North America, the Caribbean, Belize, and Costa Rica. Guesty becomes Casago's certified property management system to enhance franchise operations. Guesty’s HQ solution simplifies management, boosting occupancy and revenue. David Angotti, Guesty's Chief Evangelist, joins Casago as a senior advisor. Steve Schwab, CEO of Casago, emphasizes the importance of Guesty for franchise operations. Amiad Soto, Guesty's CEO, highlights the custom-tailored PMS product for franchisees.