As we look ahead to 2026, one thing is clear for hotel general managers and revenue leaders: digital distribution and demand generation are becoming less controllable, more automated, and increasingly shaped by a small number of powerful technology platforms.
Our recent conversation with Tris Heaword of three&six pointed to three developments that deserve particular attention, not because they are speculative buzzwords, but because they have direct implications for brand control, cost of acquisition, and long-term revenue strategy.
Here is the full interview and we have summarised some of the key points below.
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1. Google Will Push Harder Into AI-Driven Advertising
The first prediction is not that Google will introduce more AI into search and paid media – that is already happening – but that it will begin to push it far more aggressively. Products such as Performance Max (PMax) and AI Max are likely to move from being “optional enhancements” to near-default campaign structures.
For hoteliers, the risk is not simply rising costs – which have historically increased year after year anyway – but diminishing control. AI-driven campaigns remove much of the manual oversight around keywords, creative messaging, landing pages, and even which brand messages are shown to which users. While Google positions this as efficiency, it effectively transfers brand stewardship from hotel teams to algorithms.
In an industry where brand identity, positioning, and storytelling are central to rate integrity and guest perception, this shift should concern both GMs and revenue managers. Hotels will need to decide where automation genuinely adds value, and where retaining human oversight is critical to protecting long-term brand equity.
2. ChatGPT Will Make a Big Travel Push – Then Pull Back
The second prediction centers on AI-powered booking. With public statements suggesting that guests may soon be able to book hotel rooms directly through tools like ChatGPT, expectations are understandably high. However, the more likely scenario is a strong push into travel during early 2026, followed by a rapid reassessment.
The challenge is structural. The hotel industry is highly fragmented, with thousands of PMS platforms, CRS systems, and rate feeds. For ChatGPT to act as a true direct booking channel, it would need access to real-time rates and availability at scale – a task that existing OTAs have spent decades and billions solving.
More realistically, ChatGPT risks becoming “just another intermediary,” raising important internal questions for hotels. Does this sit within revenue management, like an OTA? Or within marketing, like a direct channel? Until that question is clearly answered, adoption is likely to remain cautious.
3. The AI Hype Cycle Will Start to Cool
Finally, 2026 may mark the beginning of AI fatigue. While AI innovation continues at extraordinary speed, adoption within hotel operations is moving far more slowly. Revenue and marketing teams are focused on practical, incremental gains – not abstract breakthroughs in unrelated industries.
As a result, the “wow factor” of AI may begin to fade. This does not mean AI becomes irrelevant, but rather that it becomes normalized. The technologies that survive will be those that deliver measurable improvements to forecasting, pricing, distribution, and guest acquisition – not those that simply generate headlines.
What This Means for Hotel Leaders
For hotel general managers, revenue managers and hotel marketeers, the takeaway is straightforward: 2026 will not be about chasing the newest AI trend. It will be about making deliberate decisions around control, cost, and brand protection. The winners will be those hotels who understand where automation enhances performance – and where it quietly erodes the very assets that drive long-term profitability.
