Microsoft to help OYO with IoT-enabled smart rooms, personalisation, AI solutions

Tech giant Microsoft will co-develop travel and hospitality products and technologies in alliance with Indian multinational online travel agency OYO.

As part of the contract, OYO will adopt Microsoft Azure as an enabler to drive cloud-based innovations.

The solutions will be targeted at small and medium hotel and homestays.

OYO will develop smart room experiences for travelers on the OYO platform, including premium and customised in-room experiences.

The platform will use IoT sensors driven by Microsoft Azure and will have features such as self-check in, self-know your customer (KYC) along with IoT-managed smart locks and virtual assistance.

Additionally, Microsoft has also made a strategic equity investment into OYO. However, the amount was not disclosed. 

OYO also said that it will share existing workloads onto Azure and adopt the Microsoft 365 suite for better collaboration and productivity.

OYO will also utilise GitHub enterprise in order to tap into the open-source innovation potential. Most of the solutions are also aimed at easing the onboarding of patrons, the company said.

“Our patron app ecosystem provides a ~1.4-2.4X lift in revenues for new hotels and homes that join the OYO network. We do this through our products, and application of machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI),” Abhinav Sinha, COO and chief product officer of OYO Hotels and Homes, said.

Sinha added that the alliance with Microsoft will help accelerate the deployment of products in the hands of small businesses and help create an integrated ecosystem that can be accessed in remote locations.

Small and independent hotel owners will be able to benefit from the security and scalability provided by the cloud.

“Combining the power of Azure with the tech and product stack developed by OYO, we are looking forward to accelerating innovation in travel and hospitality,” Anant Maheshwari, president, Microsoft India, said.