Robot as a concierge?

Imagine walking into a luxury hotel to be welcomed with folded hands by an attractively pieced together robot? As you walk further, another robot assists with the check-in, a third carries your luggage, a fourth delivers goodies to your room, a fifth makes you an icy-cold cocktail at the bar and a sixth takes you on a tour of the property.

A robotic experience from check-in to check-out might seem incredible, but it is fast becoming the key differentiator for luxe hotels world over.

Properties in the USA, Japan, Singapore, amongst others, are welcoming robotic technology to accelerate the guest experience.

From Hilton’s Connie, Shangri-La’s Jeno and Jena, Aloft’s ALO to Crowne Plaza’s Dash, robots are doing it all at some of the biggest brands globally. In fact, in Tokyo, the Henn na Hotel boasts of robots running its entire gamut of operations.

What’s more, with artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning making heavy inroads into hospitality, chatbots are also increasingly leveraged by hotel brands such as AccorHotels, InterContinental, etc. to make natural conversations with guests regarding travel, reservations, and giving recommendations.

Says Srijan Vadhera, general manager, Fairmont Jaipur, "As a progressive industry, we see how tech-savvy and time-conscious our guests are becoming by the day. This has led to the curation of fast, efficient and seamless services for guests through the utilization of artificial intelligence.’’

Robots and chatbots could be used at various touch points throughout a hotel.

Depending on the type, and ideally connected to an AI backbone, robots can be used for multiple purposes, says Maverik Mukerji, general manager, Ibis & Novotel Bengaluru Techpark. Reception, travel support, entertainment, housekeeping, room service, employee management and surveillance are few areas that can come under a robot’s command. While in the back-office, says Mukerji, robotic process automation can help the business to conduct repetitive administrative tasks with greater efficiency.

The greater adoption of robots in hospitality could help brands curb employee costs (and channelise the money towards enhancing the guest experience), as robots with multiple sensors could multitask and achieve more than humans. This and the super-fast delivery (a key feature in hospitality), could win properties more guests. Another interesting and important contribution that robots will make is the collation of data regarding guest satisfaction, guest behaviours, etc. This data, when unlocked, can generate key consumer insights that can be utilised to improvise business processes and innovate solutions for further enhancing the guest experiences. All of this, experts say, is bound to give a brand a competitive edge.

Chatbots, on the other hand, can be used to provide answers to questions regarding bookings, and direct website visitors to what they need, say experts. For example, says Mukerji, on the SNCF French tour operator website, “you can converse with Lea (the bot), about travel orders and train tickets.’’

Like robots, chatbots will cut down labour costs, provide increased efficiency, immediate delivery, and solve customer queries efficiently at any point of time, says Aakrit Vaish, CEO of Haptik, a leading global chatbot platform. “The chatbot practically acts as a personal assistant that takes down notes from you and your preferences. It provides the best options, makes bookings, takes feedback from you to understand your experience and improvise in future,’’ says Vaish.

In spite of the efficiency, since technology at this point is unable to replicate human emotions, hotels will still need its human staff. “Robots and chatbots will be an extension of human services and not a replacement for them,” says Vadhera.

The soul of a hotel lies in the human connection made between a guest and the hotel staff, believe experts. “No amount of AI can replicate the emotional bond that we share with a guest. It is indeed the decoded and humble human emotions that carve memories in a guest’s heart, which make them come back, again and again,” says Vadhera.

WELCOME HUMAN

• Properties in the USA, Japan, Singapore, amongst others, are welcoming robotic technology to accelerate the guest experience
   
• A robotic experience from check-in to check-out might seem incredible, but it will revolutionise luxury hotel industry