Las Vegas AI ‘hotel’ plans to disrupt industry. Butler included.

The off-Strip Otonomus Hotel, located at the intersection of West Russell Road and South Decatur Boulevard, is an all-suite, apartment and hotel hybrid from developers Growth Holdings. Located on 13 acres, the property will have 303 units and around 1,100 beds. Visitors will be able to book or rent one to six rooms at the property.

Construction is well underway, with the property expected to open in early 2025, the developers said.

“It is very disruptive, because, again, it’s not exactly a hotel. It is the hotel experience through technology,” said Steve Escalante, vice president of business development for Growth Holdings. “It’s almost better than five star.”

Each unit comes with a full kitchen and living space, and users can add up to six rooms to their unit. A one-bedroom unit will start at around $300 per night or units can be rented longer-term as apartments.

As for the AI experience, the hotel plans to use an app called Kee to streamline and personalize the user-experience, down to what kind of coffee or towels people prefer.

“Part of the AI technology is really to create a very personalized experience,” Escalante said. “The system is going to know everything on how you want your experience.”

On the app, users will be able to book their stay, tell users when their room is ready, check-in, request housekeeping, access their unit, order room service and shop the property’s retail spaces, all while the app tracks their habits to create a “unique” experience. The longer people stay, the more personalized experience they receive.

The “vibe” of the hotel is euro-centric, according to Escalante. With an interior courtyard, live music and al-fresco dining, hoping to bring “the best of the best” to the experience.

“There’s still going to be that human interaction. We have hosts that are going to be on the property,” Escalante said. “Imagine having a 24-hour butler and concierge in the palm of your hand, and when you need something and you press a button.”

Also on the property will be 40,000 square feet of retail, with 21,000 square feet of inline retail which will include four planned restaurants — Lebanese, sushi, Mexican and Mediterranean, all of which tenants will be able to order from remotely. The hotel will also include traditional amenities such as a pool, fitness and business centers.

Growth Holdings hopes to make Otonomus Hotel a global brand, with the Las Vegas location being built simultaneously with the Tulum location as their first prototypes.

Industry thoughts

“I don’t think we’ve seen an app of this sort yet,” said Amanda Belarmino, a professor at UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hospitality, of Otonomus Hotel. “There’s some people who come here, I don’t think want all of their behavior tracked, but there’s other people where they would like that kind of customization.”

AI is not a new concept in the hotel industry, especially on the Strip. Belarmino said the hospitality industry has been rapidly adapting to new technology due to issues with employment.

Caesars Entertainment uses an AI text messaging concierge service called Ivy. The messaging bot can make dining, spa and entertainment reservations, request room service and maintenance and locate lost items after check out.

Guests still have the option to opt-out of interacting with Ivy.

Belarmino says the biggest concern with AI integration is taking away from the relationship created with guests, and said it should be used as a “supplement, rather than a replacement.” She cited a hotel in Nagasaki, Japan that used exclusively robots: Henn Na Hotel. The technology ended up being too faulty, and they now use a hybrid model.

“The basis of what we do in hospitality is service,” Belarmino said. “If AI is going to take away from that, then I don’t think it will be successful,”

Contact Emerson Drewes at edrewes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @EmersonDrewes on X.