Imagine checking into a hotel through a self-check-in kiosk. You pay for your room through cash, credit card or debit card and you are issued a QR code. This QR code serves as your key to your room. As you get out of the elevator, you are escorted to your room by a robot.
With the QR code, you open your room. You no longer have to switch on the lights yourself. All you have to do is say, “Computer, switch on the lights.” If you want to open the curtains, say, “Computer, open the curtains” and the curtains will open at your command.
This is not a scene taken from a movie. It’s reality as Hotel Sogo, a budget hotel chain managed and owned by Global Comfort Group Corporation, launched the AI-Tech Concept Room in four of its branches. This AI Concept Room is the first of its kind in the country and can be considered “the future of hotels.”
“The inspiration behind the Concept Room is the Concept Car. If you have seen concept cars in different car shows, these cars are made to showcase new styling or new technology. They are exhibited to gauge customer reaction to new and radical innovations which may or may not be mass produced,” explained Sue Geminiano, Marketing Head of Hotel Sogo.
Initially two AI Concept Rooms have been made available for guests to experience in the Hotel Sogo branches in Malate, Fairview, Mexico in Pampanga and in Davao. These rooms, however, are only available for a three-hour stay and cost 40 percent more that Hotel Sogo’s regular rooms.
“The AI Concept Room is the future of hotels as these rooms are operated by the Internet with AI technology,” Geminiano said. “We want to elevate the guest experience because they will be the ones to operate the amenities. It will be voice controlled.”
Guests who would like to experience the AI Concept Room can make a reservation online. Upon arrival at Hotel Sogo, guests can skip the line at the check in counter and proceed to the Self Check-In Counter. Once the payment has been made, guests will be issued a QR code that will serve as the key to the room.
When guests step out of the elevator, they will be guided to their room by the Room Guide Autobot. Using the QR code, guests will open their room and through voice control, they will ask the computer to switch on the lights.
Though voice control, guests can ask the computer to switch on the television and put on their favorite movie. Want a brighter room? You can also ask computer to open the curtains. Also available are side table wireless charging for cellphones. Guests can also try the room’s Astral projection which can illuminate your dreams with the immersive ceiling projector which creates an enchanting atmosphere of a starlit sky.
“Guests can also experience the auto body dryer with silver ion antibacterial treatment. You don’t need to use a towel and this minimizes the carbon impact for a sustainable eco-friendly lifestyle,” Geminiano said.
The plan for Hotel Sogo is to have more of these rooms with more AI operated amenities.
“From the time we conceived this AI Concept room, we added the automated trashcan. Soon, there will be the automated bidet. In the future, we hope all the amenities in the room will be purely automated,” she said.
Hotel Sogo is optimistic that it will close the year 2024 with 50 branches. Currently they have 48 branches.
“In five years, we are targeting 100 branches and we are constantly searching for more areas to put up Hotel Sogo branches,” Geminiano said.
