Hotels are investing heavily in artificial intelligence (AI), but fragmented technology systems and disconnected data remain major barriers to adoption.
Hotels Prepare for the AI Era
The hospitality industry is entering a new phase of digital transformation.
Many hotel companies are upgrading their technology systems to support AI-powered experiences. However, each brand is taking a different approach.
Some companies are adding AI tools to existing platforms. Others are rebuilding their technology foundations from the ground up.
“Both approaches exist in the market right now,” said Tan Bee Leng, chief commercial officer at The Ascott Limited.
Building Stronger Technology Foundations
Research from Canary Technologies found that 82% of hotels planned to increase AI usage within the following 12 months.
However, many hotel systems were built before AI became a major business priority.
Doug Lange, VP of IT strategy at Choice Hotels, said successful brands must integrate AI across discovery, booking, operations, and distribution.
Choice Hotels is moving toward cloud-based platforms to connect its systems. The company believes AI works best when it becomes part of core infrastructure.
Cloud technology provides better flexibility, security, and scalability. It also helps teams share data and insights across departments.
Different Strategies Across Hotel Groups
Minor Hotels is taking a different approach by rebuilding its technology environment.
Ian Di Tullio, chief commercial officer at Minor Hotels, said many hotel systems grew over time without a unified structure.
Property management systems, reservation platforms, and customer relationship tools were often added separately.
This created large amounts of data but limited real-time visibility.
Minor Hotels is creating a connected foundation where systems work from a shared source of information.
The goal is to develop a unified guest identity and reduce duplicate data across platforms.
Data Fragmentation Remains the Biggest Challenge
Industry leaders agree that fragmented data is one of the biggest obstacles to AI adoption.
Hotel information often exists across different systems. These systems may not communicate effectively or update information in real time.
As a result, hotels cannot always use their data efficiently.
Tan said Ascott is addressing this challenge by creating a structured technology system.
The company uses a layered approach with core systems, an integration layer, and an AI interface layer.
This structure allows AI tools to access reliable information without rebuilding the system for every new application.
The Future of AI in Hospitality
While hotel companies follow different paths, they share one goal.
They want technology systems that allow AI to work effectively.
The future of hospitality AI depends not only on new tools but also on strong data foundations.
Hotels that solve their infrastructure challenges will be better positioned to deliver smarter operations and improved guest experiences.
