Hotel, Airline Chiefs on Travel and Tourism Rebounding
>> PLEASE WELCOME TO THE STAGE SEBASTIEN BAZIN, CHAIRMAN AND CEO OF ACCOR GROUP, 10TH STREET TONY FERNANDEZ, CEO OF CAPITAL A, WILLIAM ELLWOOD HEINECKE, FOUNDER AND CHAIRMAN OF MINOR INTERNATIONAL FOR CONVERSATION WITH BLOOMBERG'S POLITICAL POOR -- MALLIKA KAPUR. ♪ MALLIKA: GREAT TO SEE IT. WELCOME. BEFORE WE GET STARTED I WOULD LIKE TO REMIND EVERYONE IN THE AUDIENCE TO GET YOUR PHONE -- PHONES OUT. WE WOULD LOVE YOU TO SEND IN YOUR QUESTIONS, AND I WILL TRY TO GET AS -- GET TO HIS MANY OF THEM AS I CAN. A YEAR AGO WE TALKED ABOUT TRAVEL AND TOURISM AT THIS FORM. BILL, I WANT TO BEGIN BY ASKING YOU, WHEN WE SPOKE LAST YEAR THE CONVERSATION REVOLVED AROUND RECOVERY.
AFTER THAT WE HAVE HAD SOME REVENGE TRAVEL. ARE WE IN THE REBOUND PHASE NOW, OR HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE WHERE WE ARE AT? BILL: I THINK WE ARE IN A REBOUND, BUT WE HAVE NOT SEEN CHINA COME BACK YET. AND WILL NOT SEE THAT UNTIL THE THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTER OF THIS YEAR. I THINK THAT IS GOING TO TAKE
ANY SOFTENING OF REVENGE TRAVEL, IS GOING TO BE COVERED BY THE CHINESE. THAILAND, FOR THE FIRST QUARTER WE WERE DOWN 85% OVER 2019 FOR THE CHINESE TRAVELERS. MALLIKA: SO WE ARE REALLY WAITING FOR? TONY: WE ARE WAITING FOR THAT THIRD AND FOURTH QUARTER. MALLIKA:
I WANT TO SPEND SOME TIME TALKING ABOUT CHINA IN A MINUTE, BUT BEFORE THAT, TONY, ONE QUESTION ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS BEFORE WE GET INTO THE BROADER SECTOR. AIR ASIA REALLY MADE A HUGE NAME FOR ITSELF AS A REGIONAL BUDGET CARRIER. BUT IN THE LAST YEAR PEOPLE HAVE BEEN CONFUSED. YOU HAVE LAUNCHED A SUPER APP WHICH OFFERS A RANGE OF SERVICES, HOTELS, RIDESHARING. WHAT IS AIR ASIA TODAY? TONY: WE RENAMED OURSELVES CAPITAL A.
SOMETHING CALLED COVID SCREWED UP OUR PLANS. [LAUGHTER] WHEN I STARTED THE AIRLINE 21 YEARS AGO WITH TWO PLANES AND WE GREW TO 250 PLANES, AND THEN COVID CAME, SO WE COULD NOT. WE HAD 21,000 STAFF, SO I KIND OF TOOK A LEAF OUT OF THE DIGITAL GUIDES, RE-SKILLED A LOT OF OUR STAFF, FILLED A SUPER APP, A LOGISTICS BUSINESS, WENT IN AND STARTED A BANK USING AIRLINE DATA. THAT KEPT US GOING UNTIL NOW. BILL, WE BOTH COMFORTED EACH OTHER. WROTE LETTERS TO MANY GOVERNMENTS TO SAY, OPEN UP. BILL WOULD WRITE IT IN 25 PAGES. I WOULD WRITE IT IN THREE WORDS, PLEASE OPEN UP.
WE CAME OUT STRONGER FROM IT, BUT COVID, ONE OF THE BENEFITS OF COVID IS, IT FORCES YOU TO RETHINK. AND AIRLINES HAVE INCREDIBLE DATA. WE WERE ABLE TO DIVERSIFY. MALLIKA: SEBASTIEN, WE TALKED LAST YEAR ASH SEBASTIEN: IT WAS THE MOST INCREDIBLE HOTEL ON THE WORLD.
I'M HAPPY AS A PUROLATOR -- AS A CURATOR. MALLIKA: WE TALKED AT THIS FORM LAST YEAR YOU TALKED ABOUT A NEW TREND AND SAID WE ARE GOING TO SEE TRAVELERS COMBINE BUSINESS TRIPS WITH LEISURE. HOW HAS BLEISURE WORKED OUT? SEBASTIEN: IT HAS BEEN WORKING WELL. THE ONE THING THAT IS INTERESTING BETWEEN THE PRE-COVID AND POST-COVID IS THE CHALLENGE MIX. FOR LONG TIME, FOR MOST OF THE
BIG, LARGE CHAINS, WE WERE KIND OF TWO THIRDS BUSINESS, ONE THIRD LEISURE. AND NOW I CAN TELL YOU THAT MIX IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE REVERSING ITSELF. WE ARE ALREADY 55% LEISURE AND 45% BUSINESS. LEISURE IS FAR BIGGER THAN PRE-COVID. FAR STRONGER, FAR BIGGER, AUTHENTICITY AND WHAT COMES ALONG WITH IT. BUSINESS IS STILL NOT BACK TO
THE LEVEL OF 2019. WE ARE LIKELY GOING TO BE BACK, BUT I THINK LEISURE IS GOING TO BE THERE FOR A LONG TIME. THE PROBLEM IS YOU HAVE SO MANY PEOPLE NOW WORKING REMOTELY. THEY LEAVE ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT FROM THEIR HOME, USUALLY TWICE A MONTH, AND THEY GO LESS THAN THREE HOURS AWAY BY PARK, BY TRAIN, PIPELINE. IT IS MOSTLY CAR AND TRAIN.
AND THEY COME BACK ON TUESDAY MORNING. THAT MEANS ON THURSDAY AND FRIDAY AND MONDAY THEY WORK REMOTELY. SO HOW DO YOU ASSESS HOW MUCH OF THAT IS LEISURE, HOW MUCH OF THAT IS BUSINESS? DON'T KNOW ANYMORE. BUT THOSE CUSTOMERS ARE REPEAT CUSTOMERS. THEY GO CLOSE TO HOME, THEY GO DOMESTICALLY, AND THAT IS A MARKET WE NEVER HAD BEFORE. MY SON WAS THE DEAD NIGHT FOR THE LAST 40 YEARS WAITING FOR BUSINESS TRAVEL TO COME UP. AND MY LEISURE TRAVELERS WERE
LEAVING ON SUNDAY AFTERNOON. IT IS A TOTAL SHIFT IN TERMS OF US RESPONDING. BUT IT MAKES IT FUN. MALLIKA: TONY, LET'S TALK ABOUT FLIGHT CAPACITY. DURING COVID YOU HAD TO GROUND YOUR APPROXIMATELY 250-STRONG FLEET. NOW I KNOW YOU ARE WAITING TO GET SOME OF THEM AIR-WORTHY AGAIN BEFORE THEY CAN FLY.
AND YOU ARE ALSO LEASING NEW PLANES. IS THERE ENOUGH DEMAND TO GET ALL OF THESE PLANES BACK IN THE SKY? TONY: I THINK SO. SOUTHEAST ASIA IS PROBABLY THE LAST OF ALL OF THE REGIONS, ALONG WITH CHINA. WE ARE PROBABLY A YEAR BEHIND
EUROPE AND AMERICA. LEAVING THE MIDDLE EAST AND INDIA. WE NOW HAVE ABOUT 170 OF OUR PLANES BACK.
SO, BY ABOUT AUGUST WE WILL HAVE THEM BACK. I THINK THAT IS WHEN MOST SOUTHEAST AIRLINES WELL. -- SOUTHEAST ASIAN AIRLINES WELL. THINGS ALREADY ARE STRONG. LEISURE IS VERY STRONG. I THINK MAYBE THERE IS AN ELEMENT. WHAT WE ARE SEEING IS PEOPLE THAT SPEND FIRST ON TRAVEL BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE.
THE DISCRETIONARY SPEND AND THE CREDIT CARD COMPANIES ARE TELLING THAT AS WELL THAT LEISURE, THAT TRAVEL HAS BECOME THE NUMBER ONE KIND OF ITEM SPEND. OBVIOUSLY AS A LOW-COST CARRIER WE ARE SEEING A LOT OF SHORT TRIPS. SO, WE ARE IN THE STRANGE POSITION WHERE ONE MINUTE WE WERE FIGHTING FOR SURVIVAL, THEN RESTARTING, YOU KNOW, 200 PLANES, WHICH IS A MASSIVE JOB. I KIND OF FELT I WAS PLAYING
SNAKES AND LADDERS. YOU GO UP TO SQUARE 97 AND YOU HAVE TO GO ALL THE WAY DOWN. NOW WE ARE DESPERATE FOR CAPACITY. TO BRING MORE PEOPLE TO THEIR HOTELS SO THAT THEY CAN MAKE MORE MONEY. MALLIKA:
YOU NEED MORE FLIGHTS, RIGHT? BILL: EXACTLY. MALLIKA: I WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE COST. TALK TO ANYONE WHO IS PLANNING A TRIP AND EVERYONE IS COMPLAINING ABOUT THE PRICE OF TICKETS AND PRICE OF HOTELS. THERE IS A COST-OF-LIVING
CRISIS IN MANY PARTS OF THE WORLD. SEBASTIEN, HAVE YOU HAD TO REPRICE ROOM RATES AS A RESULT OF THAT? SEBASTIEN: WE DID, BUT THERE IS A LOT OF THINGS TO BE SAID HERE. NUMBER 1 -- YOU TALKED ABOUT IT, TONY, WE HAVE BEEN THROUGH TWO YEARS OF HELL. IT HAS BEEN DIFFICULT. IT HAS BEEN IMPACTFUL FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE IN THE WORLD WHEN IT COMES TO TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY. WITH NO JOB, WITH NO PAY, WITH
NO FUTURE. SO, HERE WE ARE. WE ARE BACK. WE ARE ACTUALLY BACK TO NORMAL. IT IS QUICKER THAN WE EXPECTED. PRICING FOR OUR HOTEL IS 10% TO 12% HIGHER THAN 2019, BUT THAT INCLUDES INFLATION. FOR LUXURY IT IS A BIT MORE THAN ONE THIRD. YOU HAVE THE BENEFIT OF PASSING
THE INFLATION TO THE END CUSTOMERS. THE AIRLINE COSTS, IT DEPENDS ON THE AIRLINES, BUT I GUESS IT WOULD BE 80%, 20% HIGHER. IT COST YOU 1 -- A COST YOU $100 FOR A ONE HOUR FLIGHT. IT MAKES NO SENSE. WHAT I'M SAYING TO YOU IS, I THINK IF YOU LOOK BACKWARD, WE DID NOT PRICE THE ROOM IN A GOOD WAY FOUR YEARS AGO. WE HAVE BEEN TOO SHY FOR TOO
LONG ON OFFERING A SERVICE AND A ROOM AND AN -- AND AN EXPERIENCE AT A GREAT PRICE. POST-PANDEMIC WE HAD TO GET BACK THE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS WE LOST. WE ARE NOT TAKING ADVANTAGE OF PEOPLE. WHEN PEOPLE TRAVEL TODAY THEY HAVE A DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE FOR ONE REASON. FOR 40 YEARS WE HAVE BEEN TRYING TO KIDNAP THE CLIENTS WITHIN THE HOTEL, FOR THEM TO STAY FOR BREAKFAST, LUNCH, DINNER TO GET THE MOST OUT OF THEM. WE FINALLY REALIZED WE HAVE TO DO EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE.
BE THE CURATOR, BE THE GUIDE, MAKE SURE THEY HAVE THE BEST AUTHENTIC EXPERIENCE OUTSIDE OF YOUR WALLS. BY DEFINITION IF YOU ARE THE GUIDE AND CURATOR PEOPLE WILL EXPECT -- PEOPLE WILL ACCEPT THAT THEY PAY THE RIGHT PRICE BECAUSE YOU ARE DOING SOMETHING EXTRA, AND THEY WILL REMEMBER THE BRAND, THAT DESTINATION. MALLIKA: BILL, HE WROTE AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PRIME MINISTER OF THAILAND A FEW MONTHS AGO IN WHICH YOU SAID, YOU ASKED, COULD HOTELS CHARGE EIGHT DOLLARS EXTRA TO INTERNATIONAL TOURISTS? AGAIN, AS A WAY TO MAKE UP FOR THE GAP, THE TOURISTS YOU LOST DURING THE PANDEMIC. THAT HAS BEEN MET WITH A DIVIDED RESPONSE, RIGHT? NOT ALL HOTEL OPERATORS ARE IN FAVOR OF THAT. WHERE DO THINGS STAND NOW? BILL: I THINK WE HAVE SEEN A FAST ENOUGH RECOVERY THAT THE PRESSURE OF THAT IS A BIT OFF. WE HAVE SEEN ROOM RATES RISE QUICKLY.
IT WAS PRIMARILY AIMED AT SMALLER HOTELS THAT ARE HAVING A GREAT DIFFICULTY GETTING RATES UP BECAUSE THEY ARE AT THE MERCY OF THE TRAVEL AGGREGATORS AND NOT ABLE TO MEET WAGE BILLS AND HIGHER UTILITY COSTS. EVERY CRISIS I HAVE EVER FACED WAS LIKE A WALK IN THE PARK COMPARED TO COVID. I THINK THIS WAS BY FAR THE MOST SERIOUS ONE, AND I THINK THOSE OF US WHO -- OR ANYONE USING LOW INTEREST RATES, LOW LABOR COSTS, AND LOW ENERGY PRICES TO MAKE THEIR MODEL WORK, IT AIN'T GOING TO WORK ANYMORE. THOSE DAYS ARE OVER.
I THINK WE'VE ALL GOT TO FACE THIS NEW REALITY, AND THAT IS GOING TO REFLECT IN AIRLINE FARES, HOTEL RATES, AND EVERYTHING WE ARE RUNNING INTO. EVEN IN THE HOTEL INDUSTRY, WHERE WE TEND TO PAY A HIGHER WAGE THAN OUTSIDE, WE ARE STILL SEEING DIFFICULTY GETTING PEOPLE. AGAIN, THE YOUNGER PEOPLE DO NOT WANT TO WORK FIVE OR SIX DAYS A WEEK. YOU HAVE ALSO GOT IN THE FAST
FOOD INDUSTRY A LOT OF PRESSURE ON WAGE COSTS, WHICH IS NOT AS DANGEROUS IN THE HOTEL SECTOR BECAUSE OF HIGHER WAGES, BUT DEFINITELY LABOR COSTS ARE GOING TO BE A VERY SERIOUS AFFECT GOING FORWARD. MALLIKA: WHAT ABOUT THE IMPACT ON A BUDGET CARRIER? PRICES, GIVING YOU HAVE HAD TO GROUND FLEETS, PEOPLE ARE NOT SPENDING AS MUCH? TONY: ON THE POSITIVE SIDE PRICES HAVE -- PRICES ARE TOO LOW. IN THE AIRLINE BUSINESS YOU HAVE A LOT OF GOVERNMENT-OWNED AIRLINES THAT WERE NOT INTERESTED IN MAKING MONEY. THAT WAS ARTIFICIALLY PUTTING PRICES DOWN.
THAT CAPACITY HAS GONE OUT, AND MORE SENSIBLE ECONOMIC BEHAVIOR IS HAPPENING. BUT I HAVE ALWAYS SAID THE PRICES ARE A BIT LOW. IF YOU LOOK AT TRAVEL INFLATION VERSUS OTHER PRODUCTS, WE WERE WAY BEHIND THE CURVE.
I THINK YOU ARE GETTING A SENSIBLE PRICE. AS I SAID YESTERDAY, AN AIRLINE PROBABLY GOT TO WHERE WE SHOULD BE. I THINK PRICING IS RIGHT. AND FOR US, WE WANT TO STIMULATE DEMAND AS WELL. SO, WE ARE NOT FIXATED BY HIGH PRICES.
WE WANT TO STIMULATE TRAVEL. AND WE DO THAT IN TWO WAYS. 60% OF OUR ROOTS -- OUR ROUTES ARE ROUTES THAT NO ONE HAS EVER DONE BEFORE. THAT IS HOW WE STIMULATE, WHILE BOARDING HUBS. THE OTHER IS KEEPING PRICES DOWN. WE ARE IN WHAT IS THE FIRST THING YOU DO WHEN CONSIDERING A TRIP? AS A PRICE, CONVENIENCE, SUSTAINABILITY, THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF YOUR TRIP OR JUST THE EXPERIENCE? IN THE MEANTIME, WHAT WOULD YOU TAKE? BILL: 74% OF TRAVELERS WILL SPEND MORE IF THEY BELIEVE THEY ARE DOING IT SUSTAINABLY. THERE HAS BEEN A HUGE ACKNOWLEDGMENT IN THE WORLD TODAY OF WHAT THOUGH CLIMATE IS DOING.
PEOPLE ARE MUCH MORE CONCERN THAN THEY HAVE EVER BEEN BEFORE. MALIKA: I AM NOT SURE IF PEOPLE WOULD PICK SUSTAINABILITY OVERPRICED. TONY: PRICE, EVERYONE SHOULD FLY AIR ASIA. UNDER 35 YEARS OLD, 69% OF THEM ARE SAYING SUSTAINABILITY. THAT IS THE FIRST PRIORITY FOR THOSE UNDER 35. IN TERMS OF WHY DO YOU TRAVEL FOR LEISURE? MOST OF THE TIME PEOPLE WANT TO COME BACK RICHER, DIFFERENT.
50% OF THE CONTENT ON SOCIAL MEDIA IS TRAVEL RELATED. YOU TRAVEL BECAUSE YOU WANT TO DISCOVER ANOTHER CULTURE, GASTRONOMY, SITE. MALIKA: LET'S SEE WHAT EVERYONE PICKS HERE. LET'S SEE IF WE CAN GET A LOOK AT THE POLL RESULTS. TONY: THESE ARE MY PEOPLE OUT THERE.
MALIKA: EXPERIENCE FAR BEHIND. TONY: I THINK ENVIRONMENT IS AN ISSUE. EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT SUSTAINABLE FUEL. THERE IS NO SUPPLY, THE COST IS 10 TIMES. THERE HAS TO BE REAL SOLUTIONS.
THE AIRLINE BUSINESS IS DOWN TO AIRCRAFT ENGINEERING. SUSTAINABLE, LIKE BUT WE ARE SEEING IS NOT JUST ENVIRONMENTAL. IT IS NOT DESTROYING THE BEACH, THE ENVIRONMENT. PEOPLE ARE MUCH MORE CONSCIOUS. LOCAL GOVERNMENTS AND RESPECTING LOCAL CULTURES. WE HAVE BEEN FOCUSING NOT SO MUCH ON THE ENVIRONMENT SIDE, PROVIDING SUSTAINABLE TOURISM AND KEEPING CULTURES INTACT. EDUCATING OUR PUBLIC OF WHAT IS SENSITIVE AND HOW WE SHOULD LOOK AFTER THE ENVIRONMENT. MALIKA:
THE EU WANTS AIRLINE TO START PAYING FOR CARBON DIOXIDE EMISSIONS. IS THAT FAIR? IF YOU WERE ASKED TO PAY IT WOULD YOU? TONY: I THINK BIGGER INDUSTRIES THAT SHOULD BE FOCUSED ON MORE. IT IS EASY TO PICK ON THE AIRLINE INDUSTRY. IN SOME COUNTRIES THEY WANT TO STOP LIGHTS FOR SHORT DESTINATIONS. THAT IS MADNESS. THAT IS VERY FRENCH. WWHAT WE WOULD LIKE TO DO IS HAVE A VOLUNTARY CARBON TAX. REGULATORS SHOULD LOOK AT INDUSTRIES THAT ARE REMOVING LARGE AMOUNTS OF CARBON. RATHER THAN INDUSTRIES THAT ARE
IN THE PUBLIC DOMAIN. I THINK WHAT AIRLINES AND HOTELS CAN DO IS EDUCATION AND GIVING THEM A CHOICE OF WHETHER THEY WOULD LIKE TO CONTRIBUTE. I THINK ENFORCING IT IS TOUGH ON THE INDUSTRY. MALIKA: I CHECKED INTO A HOTEL AND I FIND A SIGN THAT SAYS IF YOU DON'T MIND, IF YOU DON'T NEED YOUR LINEN AND TOWELS CHANGED EVERY DAY BUT KNOW. THAT IS A WAY TO REDUCE THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT. THE SKEPTIC IN ME WONDERS IS
THIS JUST GREENWASHING? >> A FAIR AMOUNT OF IT IS. I THINK THERE IS MORE THAT HAS TO BE DONE. WITH THE CULTURE, THE AREAS YOU WORK IN.
WHETHER YOU ARE HELPING THE COMMUNITY. I THINK YOU CAN DO SO MUCH MORE. WHEN WE TALK SUSTAINABLY AND THAT'S WHAT WERE REFERRING TO. MALIKA:
WHAT SHOULD WE DO AND WHAT ARE YOU DOING? >>ACCOR AND OTHERS HAVE A SUBSTANTIAL -- WHERE ON THE SUSTAINABILITY INDEX. WHERE ON THE FTSE INDEX FOR GOOD. LOOK AT WHAT THEY ARE REALLY DOING. IS NOT NECESSARILY NOT CHANGING
THE LINEN FOR THREE DAYS. THERE IS A LOT MORE WORK THAT CAN BE DONE THAT YOU CAN MEASURE MORE ACCURATELY. SEBASTIEN: I WILL TELL YOU, ESG -- THE TO THE DRIVE ME, ONE BY FAR IS TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT A THIRD OF THE WORLD'S POPULATION HAS MORE ACCESS TO DRINKING WATER THAT IS UNBEARABLE. HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY HAS A LOT OF WATER.
PROBABLY TOO MUCH OF IT. WHETHER IT'S IN THE KITCHEN, SO WE NEED TO GET BETTER. DON'T CONSTRUCT A HOTEL WHEN THERE IS NO DRINKABLE WATER NEXT DOOR. MAKING IT EVEN MORE DIFFICULT FOR OTHER PEOPLE. LET'S REDUCE THE WATER.
IN IN THE PERSON WHEN YOU GO HOME AT NIGHT, WHY DO WE CHANGE OUR LINENS EVERY DAY? WE SHOULD ASK THOSE PERSON TO KEEP THE LINENS FOR TODAY. DISTINGUISHING DRINKABLE WATER AND WHAT ARE WE DOING AS A SOCIAL ELEVATOR FOR THE MILLIONS OF PEOPLE WHO ARE UNDER PRIVILEGED, NON-EDUCATED. I DID NOT KNOW THAT NUMBER UNTIL LAST WEEK. THE LAST 12 MONTHS, WE HIRED 123,000 PEOPLE AT ACCOR, AND HALF OF THOSE PEOPLE NEVER HAD A JOB BEFORE, NEVER HAD A TRAINING BEFORE. PART OF THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY, DO WE MAKE THE WORLD BETTER BY GIVING A JOB, BY GIVING SUPPLIERS A CHANCE TO SELL? OUR INDUSTRY IS NOT ONLY ALIVE, 25% OF THE JOBS WILL BE CREATED IN TRAVEL AND HOSPITALITY. THIS IS A HUMAN CAPITAL
INDUSTRY. AT ONE HOTEL WE HAVE 1200 PEOPLE, 82 DIFFERENT AND OR NATIONALITIES. 85% OF THOSE PEOPLE NEVER STEPPED FOOT IN QATAR. CAN WE HELP THE LOCAL
COMMUNITY GO TO A DIFFERENT LEVEL. MALIKA: A HUMAN CAPITAL INDUSTRY, BUT WE SEE AI BECOMING A MUCH BIGGER ROLE ACROSS INDUSTRIES. TELL ME ABOUT HOW YOU ARE USING AI TO IMPROVE EFFICIENCY? BILL: THE BOOKING SYSTEM DEPENDS SO MUCH ON AI IN THE CHAT BOX.
IF YOU HAVEN'T OVERCOME YOUR DIGITIZATION PROBLEMS YOU WILL BE LEFT BEHIND. WE SEE THAT HAPPEN VERY RAPIDLY. MALIKA: SOMETIME WHEN YOU RENTED TO A PROBLEM, IT IS TEDIOUS WHEN YOUR CHAT NOT GIVING YOU THE RIGHT ANSWER. BILL: WHEN WE LOOK AT THOSE UNDER 35'S AND UN OVER 35'S WHO DON'T WANT THAT PERSONAL CONTACT. YOU WILL FIND BOTH.
SMART OPERATORS AND SMART HOTELS WILL USE BOTH. DIGITIZATION IN TERMS OF TRYING TO MAKE OUR PEOPLE MORE EFFECTIVE. MALIKA: HOW DO YOU SEE THIS BALANCE BETWEEN USING AI AND REGAINING THE PERSONAL TOUCH? TONY: EVENTUALLY AI WILL REPLACE HUMANS. I THINK RIGHT NOW YOU HAVE TO HAVE A FOCUS ON BOTH. WE CARRY 90 MILLION PEOPLE.
SO HAVING A CALL CENTER ONLY AND NOT FEASIBLE. IT CAN BE A NIGHTMARE WITH THREE FRIENDS. AI IS DEFINITELY GOING TO HELP. IT WILL HELP THE CUSTOMER FEEL LIKE THEY ARE IN MORE CONTROL. ON THE OPERATION SIDE, IN TERMS OF SCHEDULING. IN TERMS OF MAINTENANCE, IT WILL HAVE A MUCH MORE RELIABLE AIRLINE THROUGH OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE WITH THE USE OF AI.
EVERY INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION PEOPLE THOUGHT THIS WAS THE END OF JOBS. I THINK IT JUST MEANS A BETTER QUALITY OF LIFE. BILL: REMEMBER THE NEED OF LANGUAGES. ARTISTS WORK WITH 26 LANGUAGES AND TRYING TO DO THAT WITH HUMAN CAPACITY IS DIFFICULT. THE FACT THAT YOU CAN COMMUNICATE INTO YOUR OWN LANGUAGE EVEN IF IT IS AI, FOR MANY PEOPLE THAT IS A MUCH MORE EFFECTIVE SYSTEM. MALIKA: SPEAKING IN YOUR OWN LANGUAGE WHILE MAKING A BOOKING. SEBASTIEN: I AM OF A DIFFERENT SCHEME, AI IS AN ENHANCER AND A REMARKABLE TOOL.
DURING YOUR STAY I DO NOT WANT TO HAVE ANY AI. NONE OF YOU WANTS TO BE SERVED BY A ROBOT. YOU DON'T WANT TO BE WELCOMED BY A ROBOT.
IF YOU WANT PEOPLE TO FIND A JOB , IF YOU WANT PEOPLE TO GO FURTHER IN THEIR LIFE, DON'T TELL THEM THEY WILL BE REPLACED BY ROBOTS. FOR GOD SAKE, THE HOSPITABLE -- HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY IS ABOUT PEOPLE. YOU HAVE UNFORESEEN EVENTS AND A HOTEL AND IT'S RESOLVED BY A MAN OR A WOMAN. [APPLAUSE] MALIKA: THANK YOU SO MUCH. I AM ONE OF THOSE PEOPLE WHO
LIKE TO BE WELCOMED BY A HUMAN. THANK YOU SO MUCH. [APPLAUSE]
2023-05-26 02:44
