Industry 4.0 applications towards sustainability in hospitality: First waves in the guest room

Digitalization is positioned as an important element for the future of hospitality related services, especially since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic (Gursoy & Chi, 2020; Shin & Kang, 2020). Historically, digitalization focused on amplifying returns by increasing revenue and operational efficiency. The hospitality industry utilizes resources intensely to function well; and when used properly, technological improvements can optimize the development of a sustainable business model. This manuscript explores the role of recent innovations in digitalization, such as Big Data, the Internet of Things (IoT) , and artificial intelligence (AI) in enabling environmental sustainability in hotels. These innovations become transparent when a substantial portion of resource utilization is being consumed (Yu-Lun et al., 2019).