What Owners Should Know About AI for Designing Hotels of the Future
Authored by Mayur Patel, Senior Designer
In hospitality design, the earliest stages of a project are often the most productive. It’s where ideas take shape, where the character of a place begins to emerge and where architects and designers explore the spatial, operational and narrative possibilities that will ultimately define a guest experience.
In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has begun to reshape how design teams approach this exploratory phase. At our firm, we see AI not as a replacement for design authorship but as a catalyst for deeper exploration and sharper thinking.
Expanding the Design Landscape
Concept design in hospitality thrives on experimentation. Traditionally, teams might explore a handful of directions early on — testing massing strategies, layout options and brand narratives before narrowing the field.
AI has expanded that landscape dramatically.
During the concept phase, we can now evaluate dozens of potential directions in a fraction of the time it once took to study just a few. Massing approaches, program adjacencies, circulation strategies and early experiential ideas can all be generated and reviewed quickly.
What makes this particularly powerful is the ability to evaluate those ideas side by side. Instead of committing too early to a single design direction due to cost, teams can stress-test multiple concepts against key criteria: operational efficiency, brand positioning and the intended guest experience.
That process often leads to more productive conversations with clients and operators earlier in the project. Rather than reacting to a single proposal, stakeholders can engage with a curated range of possibilities, helping teams align more quickly around what matters most.
The concepts that ultimately move forward are stronger — not because they were produced by AI, but because they’ve already been challenged and refined through a broader exploratory lens.
Unlocking Unexpected Ideas
One of the most compelling shifts AI has introduced is how it changes the nature of early discovery.
Instead of beginning with a few familiar design moves and iterating on them, teams can explore a much wider field of possibilities from the outset. Within that broader field, unexpected ideas often emerge.
AI is particularly useful when testing assumptions about adjacencies, circulation patterns and spatial sequencing. By rapidly generating alternative layouts and program relationships, it can surface concepts that feel unconventional at first glance but reveal new experiential or operational opportunities.
For example, a lobby might begin to behave more like a social street — a dynamic connector between public spaces rather than a static arrival zone. A reimagined back-of-house strategy might free up prime areas for guest-facing programs, enhancing the overall experience.
These moments of discovery support design intuition. Designers still evaluate, question and shape the work, but AI helps provoke new lines of inquiry and disrupt habitual patterns.
In hospitality, where storytelling and experience are central to the design process, that disruption can lead to more distinctive and memorable concepts.
The Importance of Curation
As ideas multiply more quickly, the role of design leadership becomes even more important.
AI can produce an incredible range of studies in a short period of time, but meaningful design emerges through careful curation. Early in the process, we establish a narrative framework that guides every decision — the brand intent, the guest journey and the operational priorities that define the project.
Each concept, whether generated through traditional methods or AI-assisted exploration, is evaluated against that framework.
Rather than asking whether an idea is simply interesting, the more important question is whether it strengthens the story the project is trying to tell. That evaluation applies to everything from massing and spatial sequencing to material expression and the relationship between guest and service spaces.
Many promising options fall away quickly. Not because they lack creativity, but because they dilute the narrative or complicate operations.
AI allows us to explore widely without sacrificing that discipline.
Stronger Concepts Through Better Exploration
By the time a design direction moves forward, it has already passed through multiple rounds of testing, critique and alignment with both clients and operators.
The result is a concept that feels more focused, intentional and authentic. The volume of early ideas doesn’t create confusion — it creates clarity.
For hospitality designers, AI ultimately provides more opportunities to test ideas early, challenge assumptions and discover new possibilities. When used thoughtfully, it strengthens the design process rather than replacing it.
And in a field where every project is an opportunity to craft a unique experience, having more ways to explore the unknown can only make the final destination more compelling.
About the Author
Mayur Patel is a Senior Designer at BRPH with more than 13 years of experience in architecture and design. A natural creative driven to blend the worlds of art, architecture and technology, Mayur brings a storytelling mindset to the design process, creating compelling visual narratives that enhance both concept development and client engagement.
Mayur provides a unique perspective to collaborative team environments, combining technical expertise with creative vision to support innovative design solutions. His diverse skill set includes advanced proficiency in AutoCAD, Revit, Rhinoceros, SketchUp, Enscape, Lumion, Photoshop, and immersive visualization technologies including VR and Oculus.
Mayur holds a Bachelor of Design from the University of Florida and a Master of Architecture from Washington University.
