Published July 13, 2026
By Edmondo Grassi, Assistant professor (RTT) in Sociology, San Raffaele University of Rome
Hospitality Net
In the common imagination, a single gesture comes to mind when we picture checking out of a hotel: the guest sets the key on the counter, crosses the lobby one last time, and as the door closes behind them their story with the hotel comes to an end. For some years now that scene has been changing. The stay no longer ends at check-out; it merely changes form. The body that has left the room goes on living elsewhere, condensed into a profile, a trail of data, a prediction about what it will want next time.
I have spent many years studying how technology, and algorithms still more, reshape social life, its habits, its relational dynamics, the very tastes of a person, and few images render this as sharply. The guest leaves the building, yet their trace is etched into the managerial grammars of service, and for precisely this reason they have never been so present. What we call the post-stay is the threshold where it is decided who will keep the memory of that stay, and with what power to act. Read the full article on hotelyearbook.com
The Hotel Yearbook 2026 – Technology Edition
The 2026 HOTEL Yearbook Technology Edition – AI Everywhere is fully geared towards AI and explores how hospitality technology is preparing for a decade of profound change. With a clear focus on practical impact rather than hype, this edition examines how intelligence is becoming embedded across the hotel technology stack and day-to-day workflows, reshaping operations, revenue, distribution, guest experience, and the back office.
The publication will feature 40 editorial articles by domain experts, combined with a catalog of AI Solution Snapshots, offering readers both strategic insight and a curated overview of AI products currently available to the market, as well as an AI Glossary – a glossary of the most commonly used AI-related terms in hospitality. It brings together a wide spectrum of contributors, including academics, startups, hotel brands, established solution providers, and industry insiders, offering evidence-led perspectives, real-world lessons, and actionable guidance on what hoteliers should prioritize now to stay competitive in an AI-driven future. The publication will launch at HITEC 2026, San Antonio.