Innovation

🏖️ The National Bank of Cambodia (NBC) has partnered with Visa to enhance digital payments for international tourists via the "Bakong Tourists App". The integration allows users to link their Visa cards for cashless payments and funds transfers using QR Codes at over 3.5 million merchants. This move, part of the Royal Government of Cambodia’s policies to foster a digital economy and inclusive society, marks a significant step for the mobile payment app's functionality.

💻 Meta aims to become a leading player in the generative AI market with a $60 billion investment for its projects. Mark Zuckerberg announced Meta AI's update with a new memory feature to record user preferences and information across Instagram, Facebook, and Messenger. Initially available in the US and Canada, this update promises unprecedented personalization with deletable data. By 2025, Meta predicts over one billion active users and plans to invest $60-65 billion to outpace rivals like Amazon, OpenAI, and Google, up from $40 billion in 2024.

🎮 During the Net Managers Collection Winter 2025, Guillaume Rambourg, Head of European Publishing at Apex Legends (Electronic Arts), discussed the growing impact of video games on tourism. He highlighted the economic benefits of e-sport events in terms of attendance and online visibility and the role of games inspired by real places in influencing tourist destination choices, using Norway as an example. Rambourg also outlined potential partnerships between the video game industry and the tourism sector for innovative promotional opportunities.

🏠 Launched on January 24, 2025, mymarais.paris is a new promotional website for Paris' Marais district. It offers visitors information in French and English, with quality AI translations in 20 other languages. The site features accommodation, museums, dining, and shopping guides, curated by a fictional local, Julien Dumarais, to create an authentic connection and enhance brand identity.

💻 "Check-In, l’émission" featured Laurent Larochelle, a Web designer, discussing the role of AI in recruitment within the hospitality industry. The focus was on innovation and the potential of artificial intelligence to revolutionize hiring practices. The source of the information is LA TRIBUNE DE L'HOTELLERIE, a platform dedicated to hospitality news and advancements. However, specific dates, locations, numbers, or statistical data were not provided in the provided text excerpt to create a summary.

🔒 On January 16, 2025, Zataz reported a major data breach involving a CSV file with 16,020,515 lines of detailed hotel information sold for $3,700 on cybercrime forums. The data included hotel names, locations, coordinates, room numbers, and contact details, posing risks of phishing, online scams, and identity theft both to hotels and their clients.

🏖️ Erwan Simon, Co-founder and CEO of Genial, at Net Managers Collection Hiver 2025, discussed the swift integration of generative AI in the tourism sector: from testing phases in 2024 to concrete adoption in 2025 with AI agents automating tasks. He forecasts businesses will see increased efficiency through specialized AI and future collaboration among these AI systems, while raising concerns over technological sovereignty and data control amidst potential American dominance. Simon highlights the opportunity for tourism businesses to enhance processes and maintain direct customer relations using AI, and hints at a competition among major tech companies to lead the AI agent creation and coordination tools market.

🚿 WellZen, a wellness equipment specialist, acquired the activities of Physiotherm France, a distributor of Physiotherm® low-temperature infrared saunas. Physiotherm®, an Austrian brand with over 85,000 installed cabins, leads the infrared wellness niche, featuring patented SENSOcare® technology for a customized heating experience. The innovative saunas, designed in Austria and made in Germany, cater to high-quality standards in both hotels/spas and private spaces. Contact: Abla ALAMI, [email protected], +33 (0)7 49 67 20 45. Visit wellzen.fr for more information.

📈 LinkedIn's "Jobs on the Rise 2025" report shows the "Travel Consultant" role as the fastest-growing job in Italy over the past three years. Similarly, "Travel Advisor" topped the list in Spain. Despite the rise of AI-related jobs, the travel industry is recovering post-pandemic, with a record year for tourism in France and Spain in 2024. Over 80% of these travel job roles are held by women with around 4 years of experience. Many in the industry are now working remotely, with 30% telecommuting. This growth suggests the continued importance of human expertise and personal experience in travel consulting, especially in the age of AI travel itinerary tools like ChatGPT. The analysis was based on LinkedIn job postings from January 1, 2022, to July 31, 2024.

🏨 Kempinski Hotels announced executive appointments with Gordon Drake as CFO and Rasha Lababidi as CPO. Drake, with over 30 years in real estate and hospitality, previously led The Doyle Collection and held senior positions at Six Senses and Mövenpick. Lababidi, with 25 years in luxury marketing, co-founded Meraki & Modus. These roles aim to steer financial operations, global product innovation, customer experience, and position Kempinski for growth in luxury hospitality.