Longitudinal insights into the industrial IoT–green intellectual capital Nexus in the post-COVID era using SEM‑ANN approach

In the post-COVID-19 era, the tourism industry faces urgent sustainability challenges stemming from carbon-intensive operations and inefficient resource use. While the industrial internet of things has the potential to drive green transformation, how it reconstructs green intellectual capital to foster green innovation remains underexplored. This study addresses this critical gap by adopting a three-wave longitudinal survey of 543 Chinese star-rated hotels and applying a hybrid SEM-ANN model to analyze both linear and nonlinear dynamics among industrial internet of things, green intellectual capital, and green innovation. The results reveal that industrial internet of things integration directly promotes green innovation (β = 0.214, p < 0.001) and indirectly drives green innovation by enhancing green intellectual capital dimensions: green human capital (β = 0.324) through digital skill upgrading, green structural capital (β = 0.450) via improved digital governance, and green relational capital (β = 0.360) by enabling cross-sectoral partnerships. Mediation analysis confirms that green intellectual capital partially mediates the IIoT-GI relationship (p < 0.05). Notably, ANN analysis shows that green relational capital exerts the strongest nonlinear influence on green innovation. By extending dynamic capabilities theory, this research proposes a novel IIoT-GIC-GI integration model, offering a strategic roadmap for green digital transformation in hospitality. Practically, the findings inform China's tourism policy goals for 2023-2025 and provide actionable insights for enhancing low-carbon development in star-rated hotels.