While only 32 percent of travel managers used AI to assist during the last hotel request-for-proposals season, nearly 70 percent expect to do so in the upcoming cycle, according to a new Global Business Travel Association survey.
The survey of 258 travel managers across the U.S., Canada and Europe was conducted by GBTA in partnership with Radisson Hotel Group between April 20 and May 13. The report noted that the share of AI holdouts that have flipped to expected AI users within just one year "points to a market moving rapidly towards adoption."
Despite the increased use of AI, survey respondents flagged where it still falls short: assessing trade-offs between cost, compliance and traveler experience (62 percent), understanding traveler needs (60 percent) and limited integration with RFP tools and TMC systems (55 percent) topped the list of cited limitations.
"While Al can help evaluate options and identify patterns, determining how competing priorities should be balanced remains a human responsibility," according to the report, entitled "The Evolution of Managed Hotel Programs."
The report also highlighted increased use of dynamic rates, with 49 percent of respondents stating they had more dynamic rates in their program now than they did a year ago. Only 17 percent of respondents said they had more static hotel discounts than the prior year, and 25 percent said they had fewer.
The survey found that 90 percent of large corporates use a combination of fixed and dynamic rates, compared to 76 percent across all programs.