Innovation

📈 Stable Kernel, a digital transformation company, has launched its Data & AI Practice, led by Ben Manning, Ph.D., focusing on AI and data solutions with Agentic AI for business transformation. Agentic AI allows autonomous decision-making and collaboration, enhancing operational efficiency and personalization across industries. A quick-service restaurant (QSR) benefited from their services with an 80% faster time to market, reducing promotion rollout from 3 weeks to 3 days. The company's AI-powered analytics and centralized data lakehouse have transformed operations, boosting customer reach, online orders, and revenue across thousands of locations. A video-on-demand platform used Stable Kernel's services for demand forecasting, content recommendation optimization, scaling for subscriber growth, and innovation, maintaining competitiveness in a dynamic market.

📢 In San Francisco last weekend, Toast ads were spotted in the Castro Street Muni station. Within the last week, Toast released a three-minute short starring chef-turned-actor Matty Matheson at Manhattan's Marea restaurant. The marketing campaign by Toast's CMO, Kelly Esten, aims at restaurant people and also seeks to increase brand awareness with the general public. Toast retracted a controversial 99-cent charge in 2023 after backlash from restaurant customers. CEO Aman Narang announced last summer that Toast is expanding from restaurants to grocery and convenience stores. The latest ad involves actors and Marea's executive chef, PJ Calapa, but the waitstaff was not acting.

```html 📢 ``` In a Jan. 23, 2025 podcast episode, Michael Levie discusses innovation in hospitality, advocating for "importing" ideas and cross-industry skills. Supported by Shiji Group, a global hospitality technology leader, the episode encourages implementing ideas for business enhancement and improving guest experiences. Music provided by Bespoke Sound, specializing in Music Identity Design for hospitality brands.

🏨 Sean Seah, SVP of Strategy, Technology and Innovation at Langham Hospitality Group, emphasizes innovation tailored to specific problems in hospitality. Langham plans to grow from 32 to 100 hotels in ten years, focusing on customer experience and digital transformation. CEO Bob van den Oord, appointed in 2023, tasked Seah with disruptive ideas and innovation. Langham's move to a cloud-native property management system aims to centralize customer data for enhanced personalization. Seah is leveraging AI for targeted customer offers and operational efficiency, with pilot projects like Microsoft's AI co-pilot for back-office improvements. The first hotel cloud migration took six months, prioritizing learning and scaling with empathy. The overarching mission is to maintain Langham's luxury essence while innovating at scale, serving property owners, customers, and the team.

💻 The travel and hospitality industry, valued at $5 trillion, dedicates about 7% of its revenue to digital marketing, with giants like Booking.com and Expedia spending $16 billion in 2024, representing 30% to 50% of their revenues. In contrast, hotels typically spend 2% to 5% on marketing. AI platforms like ChatGPT, which achieved 200 million monthly users and 100 million app downloads in over a year, are reshaping consumer behavior. Despite the high cost of AI development, with new models estimated at $100 million, smaller companies are finding opportunities through third-party AI models. OpenAI faced a $5 billion loss in 2024, highlighting the challenge of sustainable revenue models in the AI industry. As AI evolves, incorporating real-time Availability, Rates, and Inventory (ARI) becomes a likely next step, mirroring metasearch advancements. Major companies are integrating AI to stay competitive, but AI's high costs could impact short-term profits. The hospitality marketing landscape is on the cusp of transformation due to AI's increasing influence.