News Briefs

Anacove, a developer of AI-enabled, cloud connected energy management solutions for the global hotel industry, announced that it has been selected by IHG Hotels & Resorts to serve as a Preferred Vendor of connected thermostats.

According to Anacove CEO Ian Lerner, the selection by IHG Hotels & Resorts as a Preferred Vendor is based on the results of independent IHG testing that proved Anacove Connected Thermostats outperformed all competitors in three critical areas:

• The only thermostat vendor that saves energy when the guestroom is occupied
• The most efficient connected thermostat that IHG has tested
• The only connected thermostat that provides consistent energy consumption reduction, which no other vendor has been able to achieve

“We are honored to be named a Preferred Vendor by IHG, one of the world’s leading hotel companies with 19 hotel brands, over 6,600 hotels and 987,000 rooms across the globe,” Lerner said today. “Their rigorous testing proved that Anacove Connected Thermostats provide a cost effective solution to the IHG Green Engage™ system requirements, while helping hotel owners and operators cope with annual electricity price increases by significantly reducing energy consumption.”

To conduct its testing, IHG commissioned Allumia, a market leader in commercial Energy as a Service (EaaS) solutions. Alumina ran the smart thermostat study using revenue-grade meters to determine both baseline and Anacove Connected Thermostat performance at IHG Hotels and Resorts properties in three metropolitan areas: Atlanta, Georgia; Orange Beach, Alabama; and Fort Walton, Florida.

The study began by first measuring the baseline performance of guestrooms containing existing thermostats without networked or smart capabilities or additional sensors. Once baseline measurements were recorded, an Anacove Connected Thermostat, fully integrated with the IHG Edge dashboard and IHG Connect Wi-Fi service was installed in each room. The Anacove Connected Thermostat leveraged its integrated occupancy sensing and IHG Edge to know when a room was occupied, unoccupied, or unrented to adjust settings to maximize savings.

The study also confirmed that the Anacove Connected Thermostat – the first cloud-based energy management system – saves energy at all times: When rooms are rented and occupied as well as when rooms are not rented. The typical payback period has been calculated to be less than 12 months, and even less in regions with high energy costs.

The Anacove Connected Thermostat connects directly to IHG Connect and IHG Edge, with no additional central gateways, while remaining connected to IHG and Anacove clouds, ensuring both ease of installation and operation as well as high reliability.

Google Cloud has expanded its multi-year partnership with Papa Johns to revolutionize the pizza maker's ordering and delivery experience using the power of artificial intelligence (AI). Through the partnership Papa Johns has created an innovation team, named PJX, that will leverage Google Cloud's AI, data analytics and machine learning (ML) capabilities to provide a more frictionless and consistent experience for customers both inside its restaurants and throughout its digital channels.

Through its partnership with Google Cloud, Papa Johns expects to drive success through increased order frequency, higher-value orders, reduced customer service costs, improved customer satisfaction (via a chatbot powered by Google Cloud's technology) – and ultimately, more joyful pizza experiences.

 "Our partnership with Google Cloud will enable us to take personalization to the next level. We're not just reacting to orders – we're anticipating our customers' needs and proactively providing tailored recommendations and offers. This isn't just about convenience; it's about creating a truly joyful and personalized pizza experience that builds lasting loyalty," said Todd Penegor, President and CEO, Papa Johns.

PJX will focus on using Google Cloud's AI to improve customer support, drive advanced personalization and build proactive experiences "from click to crust." Key projects for the team include:

• Anticipation of customer needs: Using Google BigQuery, Vertex AI, and Gemini, Papa Johns will proactively suggest orders through push notifications or email, based on learned customer preferences and anticipated needs for upcoming occasions like birthdays or sporting events.
• Hyper-personalized loyalty experiences: By applying Google's generative AI (gen AI) models against its data, Papa Johns can help optimize loyalty program rewards and benefits. In addition, the pizza maker will be equipped with real-time personalization that dynamically adjusts the website and app experience for users, such as presenting unique discount codes or advertisements based on previous orders, customer preferences, location, and more.
• Predictive ordering and personalized marketing: Using Google Cloud's AI, Papa Johns will be able to predict customer ordering patterns to provide relevant promotions and ordering shortcuts. This also includes AI-driven marketing campaigns that can deliver personalized offers, content, and timing based on preferences.
• AI-powered customer interactions: Papa Johns plans to build an AI-powered chatbot that can handle common customer inquiries, seamlessly escalating complex issues to live agents. The pizza maker will also incorporate AI-powered voice ordering via the app to further enhance convenience.
• Optimized restaurant operations: Papa Johns will transition to a Google Cloud-based point-of-sale (POS) system that lays the foundation for AI-driven dispatching, route optimization, and intelligent automation of key restaurant processes.

"Throughout its history, Papa Johns has been at the forefront of technology innovation – and its innovation team understands that AI has the power to transform the customer experience into something truly special," said Matt Renner, President, Global Revenue, Google Cloud. "Google Cloud's portfolio of data, analytics, and AI capabilities is helping Papa Johns deliver proactive, hyper-personalized service that goes above and beyond for its customers, building relationships that will keep customers coming back for more."

Hi Auto, a startup pioneering AI-powered voice technology for the quick-service restaurant (QSR) industry, has raised $15 million in a Series A round led by Delek Motors, the Zisapel Family, Vasuki Tech Fund, and a publicly traded strategic investor from the restaurant sector. The new funding, which brings Hi Auto's total capital raised to $23 million, also included participation from Allied Group, Goldbell Investments, and the Meir Barel Group. In addition to the funding, Hi Auto has secured a $4 million credit line to support its growth and expansion efforts.

Hi Auto's software-as-a-service platform automates drive-thru order-taking, delivering over 96% order accuracy and over 90% order completion rate. As labor costs surge—especially following California's $20/hour minimum wage for fast-food workers—QSR operators are struggling to maintain speed, accuracy, and profitability at the drive-thru. Hi Auto tackles this challenge by offloading the entire ordering process to AI, freeing employees to focus on higher-value tasks like food prep and guest engagement.

"Rising labor costs and labor turnover continue to strain restaurant operations," said Roy Baharav, CEO and co-founder of Hi Auto. "Our AI-powered ordering system acts like an always-available drive-thru specialist—one that never calls in sick, delivers near-perfect accuracy, and can upsell consistently. This funding will help us expand our footprint and refine our product as we become a trusted partner with leading QSR brands."

Hi Auto's customer roster includes iconic names such as Bojangles, Checkers & Rally's, Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken, Burger King New Zealand, and Popeyes UK. In addition to these marquee customers, the company is running multiple paid pilots with top-tier QSR chains in the U.S. and abroad. Hi Auto's leverages advanced noise-cancellation, and a specialized language model tuned to chaotic drive-thru environments, reducing order errors even amid indecisive customers, background chatter, car engines, or thunderstorms.

Dynamic Upselling for Bigger Ticket Sizes

One standout feature of Hi Auto's technology is dynamic upselling. Its AI algorithmically recommends add-ons or premium items in real-time based on factors like store inventory, daypart, and weather. According to the company, these context-aware nudges have helped boost average ticket sizes, making the AI more than just a cost-cutting measure—it's also a revenue driver.

"Whether it's lunchtime at a busy urban drive-thru or late-night in a suburban setting, we can determine which products to promote and when," said Baharav. "We've seen increased check sizes directly impacting the bottom line."

Founding Team & Technology

Hi Auto was launched in 2019 by Baharav, Eyal Shapira (CTO), and the late Zohar Zisapel, a notable figure in Israel's tech ecosystem. Baharav, who previously led product and business roles at Google, including the launch of Google's Smart Shopping Campaigns, has a background in building and deploying large-scale retail-focused AI solutions. Before joining Hi Auto, Shapira spent over 20 years in software R&D, including founding AI-driven startups. Today, the company employs 100 people worldwide.

Photo credit: Hi Auto

As the Trump administration imposes new reciprocal tariffs with U.S. trading parters, the hospitality industry will feel the impact -- including on imported food and beverages.  

National Restaurant Association President & CEO Michelle Korsmo released this statement about the new tariffs, which vary from 10 to 54%.  

“Applying new tariffs at this scale will create change and disruption that restaurant operators will have to navigate to keep their restaurants open. The biggest concerns for restaurant operators—from community restaurants to national brands—are that tariffs will hike food and packaging costs and add uncertainty to managing availability, while pushing prices up for consumers. 

"Restaurant operators know consumers are very sensitive to costs and have kept menu price increases to 30%, while their food costs have gone up 40% in the last five years. 

“Restaurant operators rely on a stable supply of fresh ingredients year-round to provide the menu items their customers want and expect. Many restaurant operators source as many domestic ingredients as they can, but it’s simply not possible for U.S. farmers and ranchers to produce the volumes needed to support consumer demand. 

"During this time of change, we’ll provide our members of all sizes with economic research to support their decision making and convene supply chain experts across the industry to share efforts for the best outcomes for restaurant consumers and the business viability of restaurants.

"The National Restaurant Association will also continue to share with the White House the real-life challenges these changes present for restaurant operators and ask to have food and beverages exempted from these tariffs.”