Stockholm hotel trials chatbot concierge

The Clarion Hotel in Stockholm is piloting a voice-activated chatbot that services the needs of hotel guests.

AI robots can perform evermore complex tasks and Springwise has covered several that are making life easier in the travel sector. An airport in Japan is trialling a robot that can, amongst other things, direct travellers to where they need to be. And this new chat app offers users bespoke travel information at every stage of their journey. Now, the Clarion Hotel in Stockholm is offering guests the first chatbot concierge.

Launched this August, Hotel Amaranten is a voice-activated system developed in partnership with US technology company EdgeDNA. The technology is based on Amazon’s robot assistant, Alexa and can perform a variety of tasks from waking guests, ordering taxis and playing music to providing information about the weather forecast and hotel opening hours. Currently piloting the system, the hotel plans to develop the technology, allowing guests to control everything from the lighting in their hotel suite to ordering room service. Should the pilot prove successful, Clarion hopes to roll out the service to other hotels.

As AI becomes ever more pervasive and persuasive, will voice-activated services become the norm in customer-facing industries?