Marriott CEO: AI Agents Threaten OTAs, Not Hotels

Marriott International CEO Anthony Capuano said in a Wall Street Journal Leadership Institute interview that autonomous AI booking agents pose a real threat to OTA market share, but less so to big hospitality brands. He argued OTAs spent billions marketing the 'myth' that consumers must use third-party platforms to find lowest rates, while AI agents can interact directly with hotel reservation systems, removing the intermediary. Capuano emphasized hotels control the stay, a 'wide and deep moat.' Marriott is undergoing a multi-billion-dollar tech transformation replacing three legacy platforms, enabling dynamic merchandising and potentially AI-agent bookings.