Do community‐led, transparent tools foster faster innovation and wider adoption than locked-down, enterprise‐grade solutions? Experts argue the merits and trade-offs of openness, commercial support, total cost of ownership, and how each approach shapes the future of scalable AI development.

As large‐language and multimodal models accelerate, will AI truly make a significant portion of knowledge‐work roles obsolete, or is that prediction overstated? Panelists debate the technology’s realistic timelines, productivity gains, and the evolving skillsets required in an AI‐infused workplace.

Are early-stage AI ventures consistently delivering breakthrough solutions, or is their novelty masking shaky business models and integration headaches? Leaders from VC funds, corporate dev teams, and startup founders weigh in on scaling challenges, due diligence, and the real ROI of partnering with emerging AI firms.

With legacy services firms facing margin pressures and global competition, can they pivot from outsourcing to proprietary AI products, or will agile startups and foreign players outmaneuver them? This debate explores investment strategies, cultural shifts, and the organizational changes necessary for survival in the AI era.

AI is no longer a futuristic tool, it’s now a core operating layer in modern hospitality. This session will explore how artificial intelligence is enabling a new generation of hotel companies to scale faster, operate leaner, and deliver more personalized guest experiences across diverse markets. I’ll share how we at Olive have reimagined hotel management through AI-powered systems that allow for remote oversight, dynamic pricing, autonomous guest onboarding, and operational automation across multiple brands and asset types. Rather than focusing on a single tool, the talk will outline how a modular AI stack; spanning analytics, NLP, and IoT integration—is unlocking new efficiencies and transforming every function from housekeeping to revenue management. We’ll also look ahead at: The future of decentralized hotel operations How generative AI is reshaping content, discovery, and loyalty The human-AI workforce model and its cultural implications Key challenges around data governance, regulation, and trust in guest-facing applications The session will offer a strategic lens on how AI is not just enhancing hospitality—but redefining what it means to be a hotel company in the 21st century.