How Will Artificial Intelligence Technologies and Service Robots Affect Tourism Jobs? A Narrative Literature Review

This study aims to examine the potential impacts of artificial intelligence and robots on occupations and employment in the tourism sector. In this study, a narrative approach is adopted by reviewing the literature and emphasizing the potential impacts on sub-fields in the tourism sector. The transformation of the tourism labor market is presented in this study under three main categories: (1) the accommodation sector, (2) the travel sector, and (3) the food and beverage sector. In the future, a significant transformation is expected to occur in these industries as artificial intelligence (AI)-supported robots become cheaper than human labor. AI-supported robots are expected to replace or work together with human labor in some areas. Three basic factors have been determined for service robots to replace humans in the industry: (1) Cost advantages offered by service robots, (2) improved operational capacities of robots, and (3) customer acceptance. The literature review reveals that there is a gap in how service robots can affect tourism employment and which jobs will be automated. This makes the study both original and important.