Innovation

🌍 Couton began her hospitality career at Accor in Paris after an MBA, inspired by travel in Thailand. She has over 20 years of experience in Thailand and Singapore, focusing on loyalty, digital marketing, and B2B. Opportunities for the Explorer community include events like a New Year’s Eve dinner with an Antarctica flight from Pullman Melbourne and a seven-night luxury retreat at Sofitel Bali. Future hospitality subscription services will prioritize hyper-personalization, evolving to include holistic lifestyle benefits.

💸 In 2026, a loyalty member of 30 years with a lifetime elite status at a global hotel brand experienced a service oversight. Despite having a branded credit card for over 25 years and staying at the hotel on their birthday, there was no recognition of the occasion. This highlights a gap in customer service, especially at luxury brands. The failure to automate birthday recognition, despite having decades of data, underscores the need for better integration of AI and staff training in hospitality systems.

📈 Hotel groups face operational inefficiencies due to manual processes, costing thousands of hours annually. A hotel saved 72 days monthly by automating rate code maintenance. Another loses 467 hours yearly on financial reconciliation. Daily reports consume 45 days per property each year. Automation saves over 200,000 labor hours across RobosizeME clients, enhancing consistency and efficiency. Join our webinar on February 23, 2026, at 1:00 PM GMT, to explore solutions. [Register here](https://forms.gle/GjzwGoRSuEDcdbup7).

🏆 2026 FIFA World Cup: Hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, this is the first time three countries jointly host. More than 200 BWH Hotels are within 40 km of stadiums. The "Go for the Goal" AI tool, leveraging Tripadvisor data, helps travelers plan itineraries, offering hotel suggestions, routes, and personalized recommendations in English and Spanish. It addresses challenges like travel between matches across vast distances. BWH Hotels has 18 brands and around 4,300 hotels worldwide.

📈 Meta's $2B Manus acquisition faces competition as Anthropic's AI-built Claude Code launches in 10 days, boasting 95% cost savings and 92% quicker timelines. Ethan Mollick's Penn experiment exemplifies AI's efficiency, compressing months-long startup tasks into four days. OpenAI introduces a 4% Shopify fee starting January 26, increasing costs to over $7 per $100 order. Meanwhile, OpenAI anticipates $14B cash burn by 2026, with Anthropic targeting $20B-$26B ARR by the same year.

💻 Oracle’s OPERA Cloud platform approved by IHG Hotels & Resorts as a property management system for America and EMEAA regions. This approval allows franchisees to choose tech solutions aligning with their needs. OPERA Cloud standardizes operations for enhanced guest interactions. Alex Alt of Oracle highlighted data-driven decision-making benefits, while Jolie Fleming of IHG emphasized its advanced capabilities for performance. Oracle has over 45 years of experience in hospitality tech.

🍻 Thompson Hotels partners with BERO, an alcohol-free beer by Tom Holland, for a year-long collaboration starting in 2026. This includes product integration, events, and content across U.S. locations like Austin. Aimed at wellness-focused guests, the partnership offers non-alcoholic options from check-in to community events. Initiatives kick off with a Dry January activation. Amar Lalvani of Hyatt highlights the collaboration’s alignment with cultural and lifestyle experiences.

💰 IDeaS launched Rate Data Advantage (RDA) in Minneapolis to boost hotel revenue and profitability. By utilizing nearly 400 times more consumer rate shopping data, RDA offers a comprehensive market analysis, helping hoteliers strategically price offerings. Key features include AI-powered automation and detailed rate trend analysis. Sanjay Nagalia highlights its potential to enhance market understanding and drive room performance.

💳 Melbourne, 29 January 2026: RMS's RMS Pay surpassed €1 billion in transactions one year post-launch, signaling a payment shift in the hospitality industry. The integrated system streamlines payments, boasting a 99.95% dispute-free rate and saving over 10 hours weekly in reconciliation, as reported by Woodgate Beach Houses. Roomzzz Aparthotels observes similar efficiencies. RMS Pay offers card-present and eCommerce payments, enhancing digital payment experiences. RMS, trusted by over 7,000 businesses in 70 countries, continues to innovate in hospitality operations.

💻 Accor has launched its ALL loyalty program within ChatGPT, partnering with OpenAI to offer conversational interactions for destination searches and offers. This integration aims to capture traveler intentions early and enhance ALL's visibility. Alix Boulnois emphasizes serving guests where they are. Accor sees generative AI as a tool to achieve business goals and manage customer relationships effectively. The initiative enriches Accor's digital ecosystem, complementing existing channels without replacing them.