- Artificial Intelligence (AI) is gradually entering homes, via voice assistants and connected objects.
- Hospitality professionals monitor market developments and adapt their offer to personalize the tourist experience.
- If AI has appeared in hotels, hospitality and (human) service remain popular with customers.
Tailor-made service for ordinary tourists. While artificial intelligence (AI) is gradually entering the daily lives of households via voice assistants and other connected objects, the hotel tourism sector has also opened its doors to it for several years. "Large hotel chains as well as smaller groups monitor market developments," explains Jean-Michel Chapuis, scientific manager of the hotel management program at the Ferrandi school. They cannot afford to invest in creating their own AI, but they rely on start-up applications that use the technologies of large players such as Google, Apple or Amazon. "
These various tools and applications allow in particular to have a finer knowledge of the client and thus personalize his travel experience. “Before, we could gather a lot of information, but we didn't really know what to do with it. Today artificial intelligence captures them, crosses them and makes them relevant ”, explains Sophie Lacour, researcher in communication and interaction and director of Advanced tourism, a company specialized in prospective in artificial intelligence. “When customers book on a platform, you can see what they choose as options, whether they do it in advance or not, what they like to have in their room, etc. ", Details Laurent Duc, president of the Union of hotel trades and industries (Umih). If tourists can voluntarily fill out an online form indicating their tastes, preferences, habits, Sophie Lacour ensures that certain applications are able to "use your public information on social networks to glean data".
Personalization of the hotel room
It is therefore very easy for an artificial intelligence to recommend a particular restaurant next to the hotel, but also to personalize a hotel room. This is where connected and programmable objects come into play. Imagine your favorite playlist that starts when you arrive, a dim light because it is a romantic weekend, the photos of your last vacation (public on Instagram) in the digital frames of the room and why not, the same temperatures you chose during another stay in a hotel in the same chain. "It's not science fiction, it's already underway," says the director of Advanced tourism. Before, personalized welcome was a service reserved for wealthy classes. At the Ritz for example, we change the decoration and furniture of some suites according to the client. With the lower costs of this technology, it is accessible for the smallest hoteliers and it will one day be in entry-level establishments. "
With AI it's also like having a butler always on hand. "There are various concierge applications that respond quickly to customer needs without mobilizing humans," says Jean-Michel Chapuis. We ask him orally or by message the wifi code or the opening hours of the bar, while staying by the pool and having the impression of really chatting with a member of the hotel. Voice bots are not new, but are growing a lot in the industry. "Ultimately we will address the same box as well to open the shutters, as to order breakfast from room service, call the maid or book a taxi for the evening," predicts Sophie Lacour.
The welcome and the service make the difference
For the latter, the next level is gesture. “The motion detectors will allow with a universal gesture to turn on the light, or the shutters. Some technologies may even capture the direction of the eyes, for example, to turn on the television when you fix the button. "
But castle life thanks to AI has limits that cannot be crossed. "The hotel industry is still human and today with the explosion of services like Airbnb, it is precisely the welcome and the service that make our value, our strength and mark our difference", launches Laurent Duc. "I do not travel 10,000 km to find myself in a hotel just talking to robots," adds Sophie Lacour. AI must improve the experience without distorting it. »Tailor-made without excess.
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