Social Sustainability in the Agent-to-Agent economy: Artificial Intelligence and the Future of Tourism and Hospitality Labour

The expansion of agentic artificial intelligence and the emergence of an agent-to-agent economy are framed as opportunities to enhance efficiency, innovation and sustainability in tourism and hospitality. Responding to calls to examine the implications of agentic artificial intelligence for the sector, this Letter extends the debate by highlighting the often overlooked consequences for labour and social sustainability. Drawing upon labour process theory, political economy and posthumanist perspectives, it argues that the agent-to-agent economy generates a social sustainability paradox: while agentic artificial intelligence optimises organisational performance, it simultaneously reconfigures employment in ways that challenge the assumed role of tourism and hospitality as a source of inclusive work. To support a sustainability agenda, the Letter highlights the need for governance frameworks to manage labour displacement, the use of critical posthumanist lenses to analyse agency in hybrid service encounters and the deliberate design of agentic artificial intelligence to enhance labour’s accessibility and inclusion.