Technology Executives Review® Special Report | AI Use in Restaurants and Hospitality

Technology Executives Review® Special Report | AI Use in Restaurants and Hospitality

In this Technology Executives Review® Special Report, host Alex Jarett is joined by Tim Walter, CIO & VP of Edward Don & Company, for a focused discussion on how AI is being used in restaurants and the hospitality industry.

From AI-generated food advertising and autonomous delivery robots to hotel concierge services, dynamic pricing, and smart kitchen technologies, AI is creating new opportunities for businesses to improve operations, reduce costs, and serve customers.

But as Tim explains, some of these technologies are still evolving. Organizations need to consider how they perform in the real world, how customers respond, and what happens when AI gets something wrong.

Key Takeaways:

• Restaurants are increasingly using generative AI to create food images and advertising content. Tim shares examples of AI-generated images containing unusual mistakes, including distorted food, warped utensils, and hands with the wrong number of fingers. Instead of attracting customers, these images can have the opposite effect.

• Human review and quality assurance are essential when using AI-generated marketing content. Tim points out that organizations need to evaluate what AI creates before publishing it, including whether the content accurately represents the product and how customers might react.

• Autonomous food delivery is expanding through sidewalk robots and other delivery technologies. These systems offer the potential to reduce delivery costs and improve efficiency, but Alex and Tim question how well they will perform in crowded environments and challenging weather conditions, particularly snow-covered sidewalks.

• Voice AI is creating new opportunities for restaurant drive-through ordering. Automating routine orders could improve speed and efficiency, but customers may become frustrated when voice assistants misunderstand instructions or fail to respond correctly.

• Predictive inventory management and smart commercial kitchen technologies offer additional opportunities for restaurants. AI-driven inventory systems could help reduce food waste and improve margins, while smart sensors can support equipment monitoring and preventive maintenance.

• Successful AI initiatives need to begin with the business problem. During the report, Alex highlights Tim's earlier Leadership Briefing on lessons learned from a successful AI project at Edward Don & Company. Tim emphasizes understanding the problem and desired business outcome before deciding whether AI is the right technology.

• AI governance and guardrails become increasingly important as organizations give automated systems more responsibility. Tim stresses that businesses cannot simply allow AI to operate without appropriate controls, particularly when security and business operations are involved.

• Hotels are expanding AI-powered concierge services, but customers still expect effective assistance when problems arise. Alex and Tim discuss situations where automated systems may misunderstand requests, make incorrect reservations, or fail to resolve problems, reinforcing the importance of reliable human assistance.

• Dynamic room pricing is creating new opportunities for hotel operators to manage revenue, but it can also create customer frustration. Tim points out that guests who book early and pay full price may become dissatisfied when other customers receive better rates or accommodations closer to their stay.

• AI-powered energy management offers another opportunity for hotels to improve operating efficiency. However, Alex and Tim discuss the importance of ensuring automated room controls work properly and guests can resolve issues such as uncomfortable room temperatures.

• The larger opportunity is applying AI to specific business problems within each industry. As Alex concludes, restaurants and hospitality companies are identifying applications that address their own operating challenges and business opportunities. While some implementations will experience growing pains, these technologies have the potential to produce meaningful improvements as they mature.

Featured Guest Analyst: Tim Walter, CIO & VP, Edward Don & Company

Host: Alex Jarett, Founder, Technology Executives Club®

See other video briefings with Tim on his Board of Advisor page here.

Watch the full Technology Executives Review® Special Report on AI Use in Restaurants and Hospitality.

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