Is AI Going to Make Hotel Websites Obsolete?

We are already witnessing the emergence of Personal AI Agents. ChatGPT Operator, Google Gemini AI Agent, Microsoft Copilot AI Agent, Claude AI Agent, and others are already a reality, and their travel research, planning, and booking capabilities are improving rapidly. The booking process via a Personal AI Agent will be very simple: travelers will task their AI Agent—either by voice or typed prompts—to find a hotel within specific parameters such as location, dates, and price range. Based on all of their "master's" preferences, the AI Agent will find and book the hotel along with all necessary auxiliary services. The critical question is whether hoteliers will invest adequately in AI technology and talent to prepare for the rise of these Personal AI Agents and become the ultimate beneficiaries of this exciting AI era. Hotels will provide ARI (Availability, Rates, Inventory) to Agentic AI platforms like ChatGPT Operator through AI connectivity middleware such as the Model Context Protocol (MCP) and Agent-to-Agent (A2A) communication, or via APIs connected to the property's CRS, Channel Manager, or cloud PMS. DirectBooker, an AI connectivity startup backed by former Tripadvisor CEO Steve Kaufer and ex-Google Travel head Richard Holden, aims to enable hotel ARI directly into AI tools like ChatGPT and Gemini. This approach could circumvent OTAs and potentially make hotel websites obsolete. It is likely that we will see a number of these AI connectivity startups emerge over the next five years, probably leveraging shortcuts to tech inventory aggregators like CRS, Channel Managers, or cloud PMS to access ARI. However, two important questions remain regarding the viability of these startups:

• How will they generate revenue? Will they charge commissions or a flat reservation fee similar to a pass-through GDS fee?
• Will AI platforms prefer to work with these startups when they can get instant access to 750,000 hotels from OTAs?
Additionally, how will these startups compete with OTAs that pay AI platforms affiliate fees from their substantial commissions and merchant markups? The future of hotel bookings is clearly shifting towards AI-driven personalization and automation. The hospitality industry must adapt quickly to these changes or risk losing direct engagement with travelers.

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Source: Originally published at Hospitality Net on 4 August 2025.

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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

AI Travel Planning

Q: What are Personal AI Agents in the context of travel? A: Personal AI Agents are advanced AI systems like ChatGPT Operator, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot that can research, plan, and book travel, including hotels, based on user preferences and parameters. Q: How will travelers book hotels with AI Agents? A: Travelers will use voice or typed prompts to instruct their AI Agent to find and book hotels that match specific criteria such as location, dates, and price range, along with any necessary auxiliary services. Q: What is ARI in the context of hotel bookings with AI? A: ARI stands for Availability, Rates, and Inventory. Hotels will need to provide this information to AI platforms, likely through middleware or APIs, to facilitate direct bookings via AI agents.

The Role of AI Connectivity Startups

Q: What is the goal of startups like DirectBooker? A: Startups like DirectBooker aim to provide direct connectivity for hotel ARI to AI tools, potentially bypassing Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) and influencing the role of hotel websites. Q: What are the key challenges for AI connectivity startups in the travel industry? A: Key challenges include determining revenue models (commissions vs. reservation fees), competing with OTAs' established relationships with AI platforms, and gaining access to hotel inventory when AI platforms can directly access vast hotel listings from OTAs.

Future of Hotel Bookings

Q: How will AI impact the hospitality industry's direct engagement with travelers? A: AI-driven personalization and automation in bookings mean hoteliers must adapt to these changes to maintain direct engagement with travelers, or they risk losing this engagement to AI intermediaries.

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Crypto Market AI's Take

The rapid advancement of AI agents in travel planning presents a parallel to the disruption already seen and anticipated in various other industries, including finance. Just as AI agents are poised to streamline travel bookings, AI-powered tools are revolutionizing how we approach financial markets. At Crypto Market AI, we focus on leveraging these advancements to provide cutting-edge solutions for cryptocurrency trading and market intelligence. Our platform utilizes AI agents for sophisticated market analysis, automated trading strategies, and personalized financial insights, aiming to empower users in the dynamic crypto landscape. Understanding the potential for AI to reshape entire sectors, from hospitality to finance, highlights the importance of adapting to and harnessing these technologies for efficiency and innovation. For those interested in how AI is transforming financial markets and trading, explore our insights on AI-driven crypto trading tools and discover how our platform leverages AI for strategic cryptocurrency portfolio management.

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