Can too much of AI in hospitality be a bad thing?
Lennert de Jong, president for hospitality at Planet speaking at ITB Berlin in March remarked, “Farmers use more digital technology than hoteliers”. The good news though is that the hospitality industry seems to be rushing towards embracing new technology… albeit a bit too much as per the technology specialist Thomas Wahl.
Wahl’s long involvement in the technological field made him an advocate of its power to enhance the overall guest experience. However, he cautions the hospitality industry against its overreliance on technology with the time tested proverb “Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing”.
The benefits of technology are undoubtedly great. It is far - reaching and affects every aspect of our 21st century lifestyle. For instance, we are surrounded by artificial intelligence (AI) - which is not a new fangled thing. It’s been around in our daily lives for years…in transportation, in banking, in shopping, in entertainment, in communication, infact, AI is everywhere we are now.
Technology and digital transformation play a crucial role in the hospitality industry, especially in the post-pandemic era. Battling labour shortages, that are hurting the industry, increasing operational costs and the constantly evolving needs of consumers, businesses must align their products and services with the most recent technology, in order to retain a competitive edge.
AI technology can streamline many routine tasks such as guest verification, check-in, check-out and more. Chatbots can improve guest experience by providing instant assistance to guests, answering questions and providing information on demand.. Robots can lower staff workload - although we are a long way from robots changing the hotel room bed sheets.
However, like in many cases, when there is too much of a good thing, there’s always a tradeoff. It sometimes feels like technology is taking over our lives (and our jobs) and that could be the bad and ugly side of relying too much on technology.
Although the light and dark sides of AI have been in the spotlight for several years, the impressive and yet scary capabilities of ChatGPT and other conversational and image-producing AI programmes feels like a turning point.
There is a valid fear that AI will replace humans, displacing their jobs and require people to master new skill sets. AI is frequently thought about in intense terms and viewed by many as a very terrifying intruder who will automate and take away jobs done by mortals. These anxieties were stoked by Elon Musk and the late Stephen Hawking, when they describing the rise of artificial intelligence as one of the greatest threats to the future of humanity.
Understandably, if hospitality businesses do not invest in technology, they run the risk of becoming non-competitive and eventual closure. In the main, that disconnect is a bigger risk to job creation, rather than the speculated job losses due to automation.
Those in the hospitality industry must realise that whilst technology applications make the job easier, they are simply enablers that facilitate a human being to deliver above the ordinary service. Bottom line: Personal touch matters where it matters and those that learn to integrate AI and what it can do, properly, will stand out in the service landscape.
In conclusion, computer scientist and DARPA-funded AI researcher Erick Larsen’s claim, in his paper ‘’The Myth of Artificial Intelligence’, and I quote, “There is no way for current AI to ‘evolve’ into general intelligence in the first place…” unquote, is worth noting.
Shafeek Wahab – Editor, Hospitality Sri Lanka, Consultant, Trainer, Ex-Hotelier
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