ACCOMMODATION TECH
Mews Unveils Full AI-Native Operating System at Unfold 2026 - 476% ROI, €350K Annual Benefit Per 100 Rooms
Mews launched five new products at Unfold 2026 (700-hotelier event, Amsterdam, May 27), completing an AI-native OS that unifies PMS, RMS, Guest Messaging, Business Intelligence, Accounts Receivable, and Channel Management on a single data model. IDC research confirms 476% three-year ROI, around $400,000 (€350,000) annual benefit per 100 rooms, and a four-month payback. Channel management comes through the native SiteMinder integration, embedding 400+ OTA distribution directly inside the hotel OS. Mews-Uber ride booking launched simultaneously — the first ride-hail integration inside a PMS.
05/27/2026
Pudu Robotics and Shenzhen CTID Co. Ltd Launch the World’s First Full-Scenario Robot-Serviced Hotel Project
Pudu Robotics ($1.5B+ valuation) and Shenzhen CTID Co. Ltd signed a strategic agreement to create the world’s first full‑scenario robot‑serviced hotel on the West Artificial Island of the Shenzhen–Zhongshan Link, with trial operations in late 2026. The next‑generation hotel integrates robots across reception, check‑in, room delivery, cleaning, food service, and guest support, powered by embodied AI and multi‑robot collaboration, representing one of the industry’s most comprehensive real‑world robotics deployments. Unlike smart hotels using isolated automation, it is a fully connected robotic service ecosystem enabling continuous, autonomous service across public spaces, guest rooms, and back‑of‑house operations, delivering seamless, personalized experiences. The phased rollout toward 2030 aims to set a global benchmark where hospitality, tourism, and intelligent automation converge.
06/02/2026
Robots known for food delivery in L.A. will now deliver laundry
Autonomous delivery robots from Serve Robotics have become a common sight on Los Angeles sidewalks. Now, they are expanding into the personal service sector to deliver laundry orders for NoScrubs, an on‑demand pickup and delivery service. Serve Robotics CEO and Co-founder Ali Kashan says the startup has built one of the largest autonomous delivery platforms, and proved their model in some of the densest, most complex cities. “The same Serve robots that bring you dinner will soon bring you your laundry and more,” he adds.
06/02/2026
Commercial humanoid robots in China may soon do laundry, make beds, care for elderly
Humanoid robots in China are being developed for hospitality operations including room service, housekeeping, and elder care applications. This advancement signals growing adoption of robotics in accommodation operations.
05/21/2026
Marriott’s AI Rollout: From Pilots to ‘Points on the Board’
Marriott is now in phase three of its AI strategy: past pilots and infrastructure, now delivering revenue and cost outcomes. Conversational search is launching on Marriott.com, built on a central intelligence layer connecting 283M Bonvoy members via Google Cloud, where each new AI deployment builds on the last. SVP Colin Coleman: ‘The harder work is rethinking the workflows underneath.’
06/03/2026
Major North American Hotel Adopts SalesCloser AI Voice Agents To Automate Overnight Room Service Operations
SalesCloser Technologies achieved its first commercial deployment at a major 270-room beachfront hotel. AI voice agents now handle overnight room service requests, reducing staffing demands while maintaining service quality and order accuracy.
06/08/2026
The hotel with no staff gave me better hospitality - here’s why that matters
A recent stay at a completely automated, contactless boutique hotel highlighted a fascinating paradigm shift in modern guest expectations: the complete lack of face-to-face staff actually enhanced the overall hospitality experience. By leveraging seamless digital check-ins, automated text-based concierge bots, and instant mobile key delivery, the property removed traditional friction points.
06/03/2026
TRAVEL & MOBILITY TECH
Perk secures $300M in finance to accelerate global growth of its AI-native platform
AI-native travel and spend management platform Perk (formerly TravelPerk), announced the close of a $300M private credit facility led by Neuberger Specialty Finance, alongside Blue Owl Capital Inc. (NYSE: OWL), Hercules Capital Inc. (NYSE: HTGC) and Liquidity. The facility upsizes and replaces Perk’s 2024 credit facility on materially improved terms. In 2025, Perk crossed $300M in annualized revenue and grew revenue 48%, making it the fastest growing global travel and spend management platform, with best in category gross margins providing a clear pathway to profitability in the short term. “AI is a huge tailwind for Perk and its deployment throughout our product has enabled us to drive gross margins from 40% to mid-70s in 3 years, whilst maintaining the highest levels of customer experience. Alongside our investment in the product, the continued roll-out of AI throughout the company will enable us to scale faster and more effectively,” said CFO Roy Hefer.
06/03/2026
WeRoad Raises $58M Series C Led by Airbnb — US Expansion Begins, CEO Hired to Run Airbnb Hotels
Airbnb led a $58M Series C in Milan-based group travel startup WeRoad, taking a 10% stake and a board seat. This brings the company’s total capital raised to approximately $100M, and will finance its expansion in the US, starting with a launch in Austin, Texas. WeRoad generated around $150M (€130M) revenue in 2025 (+30% YoY) and served 300,000+ customers across 1,000+ itineraries globally. Airbnb simultaneously hired WeRoad’s CEO to lead its new hotels division.
05/27/2026
CarTrawler acquired by US travel group Expedia
Dublin-based B2B travel technology platform CarTrawler has been officially acquired by global travel giant Expedia Group in a major consolidation move within the global transport sector. While financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, industry sources speculate the company would be worth north of $450M (€387M). The acquisition integrates CarTrawler’s robust car rental and ground transportation software solutions directly into Expedia’s extensive distribution network.
05/20/2026
Ixigo Acquires Hotel Booking Platform Brevistay for $17.4M and Invests in AI Startups
Ixigo announced its plans to acquire a 54.66% majority stake in hotel booking platform Brevistay Hospitality for $17.4M, expanding its flexible-stay offerings. Once complete, Brevistay will become a subsidiary of Ixigo, and together, gain access to over 10,000 directly contracted hotels across India. The company also invested in AI startups Proactai and Vestra.AI, reinforcing its AI-native travel platform strategy.
06/05/2026
Travelport, Cognizant and Anthropic Collaborate to Power Travel Technology for the AI Era
Travelport has announced a strategic multi-year partnership with Anthropic and Cognizant to build the infrastructure for AI-era travel. The three companies share one goal: making AI work for real travel transactions, not just trip inspiration. Travelers now search using natural language and AI assistants, but most booking systems weren built for conversational AI. Travelport’s TripServices platform will embed Claude directly into its API layer, while Cognizant delivers enterprise-scale implementation. This partnership connects AI-driven discovery to live, bookable, serviceable travel content. Customers including airlines, OTAs, agencies, and more will get faster platform capabilities and native AI features without building their own AI stack. The work is already underway, with impact showing up over coming months.
05/27/2026
Vietnam Joins Thailand, Japan & Korea to Fuel Asia’s $60B Golf Tourism Explosion with Tech Innovation, Resorts, Flights & Travel Demand
Asia’s golf tourism market is booming as Vietnam joins Thailand, Japan, and South Korea to drive a $60B market by 2033, with Asia Pacific golf tourism valued at $5.36B in 2025 and growing 12% annually. The industry’s tech and AI innovations are central to attracting high-end golfers: Digital and AI Travel Integration enables one-stop booking for flights, hotels, and golf tee times, while virtual golf course tours offer digital previews of courses. Advanced tee timers enhance scheduling, and luxury resorts provide integrated “stay and play” packages, transforming golf tourism into premium leisure travel.
06/10/2026
China’s Innovation Tourism Boom 2026: EV Plants, AI Labs & Robotics Hubs Lure 50M+ Travelers from Asia-Pacific
China’s tourism has undergone a seismic shift. Gone are the days where travelers visited the Great Wall, Forbidden City, and traditional pagodas - landmarks of ancient history. Today, 50M+ Asia-Pacific travelers flock to BYD EV factories, AI research labs, and robotics hubs in Shanghai, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, and Beijing. Innovation tourists spend 40% more than traditional visitors, stay 6-8 days (vs. 3-4), and generate 2.3x the economic impact. Premium packages cost $4,500-$8,500 for exclusive facility access. China has deliberately positioned itself as the world’s premier destination for witnessing future technology, not its past.
06/07/2026
How Expedia Is Reinventing Travel Through AI And Agentic Design
Expedia’s Chief Technology Officer Ramana Thumu explains how the company is leveraging AI and agentic design principles to reimagine travel planning and booking experiences. On the customer-facing side, AI has already transformed Expedia’s service operations: 80% of contacts are resolved in under 60 seconds, with a 92% first-contact resolution rate across 31 languages in 50 countries. Internally, 92% of Expedia’s engineers have adopted AI coding assistants, and more than 10% are achieving two to five times productivity improvements.
05/29/2026
Honda’s Hybrid Air Taxi Takes Flight in California
Honda has achieved a significant milestone in advanced air mobility with the successful prototype flight testing of its new hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxi. Designed to tackle intercity urban transit, the hybrid propulsion system offers an extended operational range compared to purely battery-powered alternatives.
06/03/2026
I flew on a startup’s one-of-a-kind electric plane that could reshape air travel by 2027
A firsthand account of flying on an innovative electric aircraft that could revolutionize sustainable air travel. Developed by Beta Technologies, the startup already has orders from carriers like Air New Zealand and is expected to begin revenue-cargo flights later this year under a Transportation Department pilot program. Full certification is expected in late 2027.
06/02/2026
Startup Stage: Bliink targets Southeast Asia’s SME business travel market
Bliink is building an AI-powered corporate travel platform designed to bring managed travel services to small and medium-sized enterprises across Southeast Asia, addressing the underserved SME business travel segment. Combining booking, policy compliance, approvals and personalized recommendations, the startup draws inventory from more than 600 airlines and 2.6M properties.
06/08/2026
Apple’s Rebuilt Siri Opens New Doors for Travel Apps
Apple’s rebuilt Siri is enhancing understanding of travel context and opening new integration possibilities for travel applications and services.
06/08/2026
F&B TECH
Five V pours $55M into hospitality tech start-up Ordermentum
Growth equity firm Five V Capital has injected $55M into Ordermentum. Founded in 2014, Ordermentum has built Australia’s largest digital network connecting wholesale food and beverage suppliers with the venues they serve, spanning about 1,000 suppliers and 47,000 venues, with over $7B in cumulative gross merchandise value processed on the platform. The investment reflects growing institutional appetite for cloud-based hospitality platforms that streamline operations and improve booking efficiencies.
05/22/2026
Innovorder Lands $23.2M to Expand Its AI-Powered Restaurant Platform Across Europe
French restaurant technology provider Innovorder secured around $23.2M (€20M) in funding led by UL Invest to expand across Europe and deepen AI investments. The company, which has been profitable since 2024 with 40% annual organic growth, is deploying AI agents through its Atlas platform and expects to generate a revenue of approximately $17.3M (€15M) by 2026
06/05/2026
allO Raises $14M Series A — AI-Native Restaurant Operating System Live at 1,000+ Locations, 6x Growth Since Seed
Munich-based allO raised $14M (€12M) Series A led by Zigg Capital, with LifeX Ventures, Aperture, 20VC, and Keen Venture Partners. The platform deploys AI digital employees for reservations, phone ordering, and restaurant operations — eliminating tablets and call stress. Now live at 1,000+ restaurant locations, 6x growth since its seed round. Board additions include ex-Starbucks, Vapiano, and Burger King Germany executives. Expanding across Europe in 2026.
05/27/2026
AI-powered food technology startup Freshflow secures $10M Series A funding round
Freshflow, an artificial intelligence company focusing on optimizing fresh food supply chains for retailers, has successfully closed a $10M Series A funding round. The investment will be deployed to expand the startup’s footprint across Europe and the US, bringing its predictive inventory software to more grocery shelves.
06/03/2026
Grab bets on new delivery robots to fix Singapore’s ‘supply-constrained markets’ and solve the last-mile problem
Grab will launch a pilot of its first delivery robot (Carri) in Singapore’s Punggol district in late 2026. The robot will automate the first and last 100 meters of delivery, addressing labor shortages in supply-constrained markets.
05/20/2026
McDonald’s Turns to Connected Operations, AI and Automation to Drive Its Next Phase of Innovation
McDonald’s launched its McDonald’s Next strategy, positioning technology as the key growth driver, centered on the AI-powered ArchIQ operating platform. This builds on years of cloud infrastructure, restaurant connectivity, and operational intelligence investments, stemming from its multi-year Google Cloud partnership designed to connect thousands of global restaurants while enabling advanced analytics and AI applications. The strategy mirrors the broader quick-service industry trend. Yum Brands expands its Byte by Yum platform across Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC; Wendy’s invests in digital ordering and automation; Chick-fil-A focuses on technology-enabled drive-thru excellence. Restaurant brands are shifting from isolated solutions toward integrated technology ecosystems connecting labor, kitchen operations, customer engagement, and business intelligence.
06/08/2026
Delivery robots expand across LA as restaurants embrace new technology
Serve Robotics expanded delivery robot service to 40 Los Angeles neighborhoods, up from two in 2023. The company has grown its robotic fleet in LA eleven-fold since 2024, helping restaurants boost takeout and delivery sales.
05/21/2026
Food Delivery Robots To Launch On Indiana University Campus
A fleet of 24 food-delivery robots are launching on the Indiana University Bloomington, in partnership with Grubhub and Avride, aiming to make campus food more accessible and convenient to students, parents, and visitors. IU joins the likes of other institutes like Purdue University and Ball State University that have introduced similar services. Customers simply use the GrubHub app to unlock the robot when it reaches its destination.
06/05/2026