Alexa from Amazon in every hotel room

The first hotel in the Middle East to feature the AI experience of Alexa in every room will debut this week. What exactly does this mean for hotel guests?

Amazon Alexa voice assistants can assure personalized service and adjust the comforts of hotel rooms simply by guests speaking commands. Hotel guests can ask such things as:

“How do I connect to Wi-fi?”

“When does the spa open?”

Or an Alexa favorite:

“Is a hot dog a sandwich?”

Guests can also ask her to do things for them such as, “Alexa…

“Turn on the TV.”

“Turn down the lights.”

“Send champagne to my room.”

“Wake me up at 8:00 tomorrow morning.”

But how safe is it to use Alexa?

At the JA Lake View Hotel Dubai – the first hotel in the Middle East to feature Alexa in every room and opening this week – is run by Volara software which enables additional layers of security to ensure that guests’ personal information and conversations are protected. On top of that, JA Lake View Hotel’s proprietary data is also secure.

The software that runs Alexa will allow the hotel to manage conversations with its guests in real-time. Its secure integrations hub, which now includes over 40 hotel technologies, is enabling guests’ requests to prompt specific actions, whether routing a task to hotel staff or turning on the air conditioning.

And not only that, but Alexa seems to be able to detect your accent and understand your request. Volara’s patent pending Accuracy Engine ensures guest requests are properly handled, taking into consideration the many colloquialisms and accents used by global travelers.

So what would you first ask Alexa to do when you arrive in an AI technological hotel room?

“Alexa, can you unpack my bags?”