Marriott Deploying Entrance Desk AI Instrument To Assign Rooms, Elite Upgrades

Marriott will quickly be automating the method of assigning visitor rooms. Whereas changing human duties with AI doesn’t all the time sound like a buyer centric transfer, perhaps that is truly excellent news?

I first lined this subject a few weeks in the past, however wish to present an replace, as we now have a date for when this course of can be applied.

Marriott is automating job of assigning rooms

Marriott Chief Know-how Officer Naveen Manga participated in the Skift Information and AI Summit a couple of weeks in the past, speaking in regards to the incremental progress that the corporate is making with AI. One remark stood out to me, specifically.

Marriott will quickly be deploying an AI device that can automate the duty of resort room assignments for entrance desk workers. As described by Manga, “basically, taking hours and hours of handbook work — all that heads down work the associates do — and in a fraction of a second, 1.2 million rooms could be assigned.”

Lodges assigning rooms each day is a giant job, each provided that it must be executed each day, and in addition given the variety of issues that go into this. Entrance desk workers have to think about issues like arrival instances, room preferences, occupancy ranges, elite standing or different improve eligibility, and so forth.

In the case of upgrades, it’s my understanding that Marriott at the moment has a system that secretly prioritizes company for room upgrades, primarily based on elite standing and different elements. Then it’s as much as the entrance desk brokers to run down that listing, improve company, and assign rooms.

We’ve now discovered that this new course of can be applied as of July 14, 2025. Right here’s how Marriott describes this new course of internally, per a Reddit person:

To drive higher operational effectivity and improve the visitor expertise, Marriott is launching a technology-driven enhancement that can streamline how upgrades are managed throughout motels. ACUs will construct on the present complimentary improve system to put Marriott Bonvoy Gold and higher-tier Elite members in a better room class.

Is automation good or dangerous for resort company?

Typically talking, after we hear of AI within the resort trade, it’s not excellent news. The intent is usually for the resort to chop prices and enhance the underside line, reasonably than bettering the visitor expertise. Nevertheless, on the floor, I really feel like automating room assignments may even have some upside, or at worst, be impartial.

In spite of everything, a pc can assign room varieties most pretty primarily based on quite a lot of elements. Moreover, for motels that aren’t nice about upgrading, perhaps automating the assigning of rooms will truly improve the variety of upgrades which can be given out. That assumes that the AI device doesn’t have a “resort proprietor hates Bonvoy members” setting, that motels can select to toggle on. 😉

As all the time, the satan is within the particulars, and a device like that is solely pretty much as good because it’s instructed to be by its creators. So I’m very curious to see to what extent this new system does its greatest to improve company, or if motels can discover a option to recreation this method and keep away from offering upgrades. Marriott’s normal subject is its lack of consideration to element with visitor expertise, and the extent to which it lets motels get away with shenanigans. Can an AI device assist in these areas? I assume time will inform…

Backside line

As of July 14, 2025, Marriott will start automating the method of assigning visitor rooms on the day of arrival, making jobs simpler for entrance desk workers. Whereas I’m typically skeptical of the extent to which AI improves buyer expertise, I’ve extra religion in a pc than I do within the common entrance desk Marriott worker on the subject of assigning upgrades, so I wouldn’t essentially contemplate this to be dangerous information.

To be clear, that’s not a dig at Marriott workers, as they’re usually simply doing what they’re informed to do. The problem is the resort house owners that need the worldwide distribution energy of Marriott (thanks largely to the Bonvoy program), with out offering the advantages that make it fashionable. It’ll be fascinating to see if we discover any distinction with upgrades and room assignments as soon as that is rolled out.

What do you make of this new Marriott AI device for assigning rooms?