Innovation

📰 HITEC 2026, the largest nonprofit hospitality technology event by HFTP, will be held June 15–18 at Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Texas. Expect 370+ exhibitors and 6,000 attendees exploring tech trends. The HITEC Advisory Council, chaired by Lyle Worthington, manages the education program. Entrepreneur 20X pitch competition returns, with a submission deadline of March 31. HFTP, established in 1952, supports hospitality finance and tech sectors worldwide from Austin, Texas.

💻 The Landmark London, a luxury hotel in Marylebone, partners with IRIS to enhance in-room dining through IRIS Mobile Ordering, streamlining operations and boosting efficiency. The system handles over 100 orders in a shift, improving accuracy and service speed. QR code gold cubes in rooms link to menus and services, supporting sustainability and reducing costs. Since implementation, the hotel reports higher guest spending, increased order capacity, and improved staff efficiency and guest satisfaction.

🏨 In San Francisco, Canary Technologies partners with Crown Resorts in Australia to modernize guest experiences using their AI-powered platform. Crown, a luxury hospitality brand, integrates Mobile Check-In, AI Messaging, and Smart Checkout across its properties. Canary's solutions, trusted by over 20,000 hotels in 100+ countries, streamline operations and enhance guest interactions, aligning with Crown's modern luxury traveler expectations. Recognized globally, Canary advances hotel tech with over 20,000 hotel partners.

💻 2025 marked a revelation for many organizations as “smart” AI agents struggled with outdated infrastructure. By 2026, leaders will focus on redesigning workflows for an agentic-first world. Key strategies include semantic telemetry, stateless asynchronous APIs, and a metadata layer for context-rich decisions. These components promise to transform enterprise systems from rigid patterns to event-driven fluidity, paving the way for successful AI integration. Read more about these strategies at cio.com.

📅 2026 ushers in a promising era for Hospitality Net and the hospitality industry. In January, Hospitality Net will unveil a revamped website aimed at enhancing content discovery and networking. 2026 also introduces a campaign on AI's impact, collaboratively exploring its real-world applications. The new Industry Calendar, featuring global events across technology, sustainability, finance, and more, supports industry engagement. An opportunity for event additions is available for broader participation.

🤖 Humanoid robots are being tested in factories and domestic settings in early 2026 due to labor shortages in hospitality. These robots, like Tesla’s Optimus, are learning tasks such as picking up items. High costs and developmental stages limit their immediate deployment, but costs are expected to decrease with market competition. Housekeeping and cooking tasks are challenging for robots, delaying their adoption in these roles, but they may replace well-paid jobs first.

🏨 RateGain Travel Technologies announced a reseller partnership with Aztech Digital, enhancing UNO VIVA's reach in Greece and Cyprus. UNO VIVA is an AI voice agent for hotels, managing reservations in over 30 languages, 24/7. Aztech Digital, with 25+ years of expertise, will distribute it exclusively, reducing operational costs by up to 60% and increasing revenue by 40%. RateGain serves 3,200+ customers in 100+ countries, including 16 Global Fortune 500 companies.

💻 Prague, January 8, 2026: RobosizeME will sponsor Oracle Hospitality Summit 2026, January 19-21 in London. By integrating with Oracle Hospitality Integration Platform (OHIP), RobosizeME's solutions save over 24,000 staff hours annually. Batch Deposit Processing saves over 17,400 hours, while the Booking.com Commission Checker saves over 5,000 hours. Trusted by major hotels like Radisson and Kempinski, RobosizeME’s secure automation is reshaping hotel operations, enhancing efficiency and precision.