Why hotel AI is chasing savings while revenue remains untapped

Mews argues that fragmented hotel systems are preventing AI from delivering meaningful revenue growth and guest personalization

Hotels have largely embraced artificial intelligence as a tool for reducing labor costs and improving operational efficiency. However, Mews founder Richard Valtr believes the industry is missing a much larger opportunity: using AI to drive revenue growth and improve guest experiences. Speaking at the Skift Data and AI Summit, Valtr argued that disconnected hotel systems and fragmented data make it difficult for AI to generate personalized offers, optimize guest journeys, and unlock new revenue streams. Mews is positioning its platform strategy as a solution to these challenges by bringing operations, distribution, guest data, and revenue management into a unified environment.

Key takeaways

• AI is being used primarily for cost reduction: Many hotels focus on automating administrative tasks and reducing labor expenses rather than using AI to create new revenue opportunities.
• Fragmented systems limit AI’s potential: Property management, revenue management, CRM, and distribution platforms often operate independently, preventing AI from accessing the complete data picture needed for effective decision-making.
• Granular data matters: Valtr argued that details as specific as room orientation, view, or guest arrival patterns can significantly improve personalization and pricing decisions when leveraged by AI.
• Traditional hotel processes create data blind spots: Standardized practices such as fixed check-in times reflect operational convenience rather than guest behavior, limiting the quality of data available for AI-driven insights.
• Guest experience should be the focus: Technology should help hotels deliver more meaningful welcomes, departures, and personalized interactions rather than simply streamlining back-office tasks.
• Mews is building an integrated platform: The company recently launched new products, including a native revenue management system and a channel manager developed with SiteMinder, designed to eliminate data silos across hotel operations.
• Acquisitions support the strategy: Mews has acquired 14 companies, including AI analytics platform DataChat, to create a unified data foundation that can support more advanced AI capabilities.
• The revenue promise remains to be proven: While Mews has invested heavily in an integrated architecture, the industry is still waiting for clear evidence that this approach can consistently generate meaningful revenue gains for hotels.

Source: Skift

Read also: SiteMinder's second act

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