SCOTTSDALE, Arizona—Choice Hotels International, Inc. kicked off Mastery, its 11th annual technology and innovation summit. Throughout the week-long event, more than 800 associates will gather to work in real time, solving business challenges through hands-on workshops, collaborative competitions, and knowledge-sharing sessions—focused on helping franchisees drive revenue, reduce costs, and operate more efficiently.
This year, Choice Hotels associates from across the company will explore how advancements in artificial intelligence, cloud-based platforms, data and analytics, cybersecurity, and other emerging technologies can strengthen business intelligence, enhance security, support on-property operations, and continue to scale Choice Hotels’ proprietary tools and systems.
At Mastery, interactive challenges such as “Capture the Flag” (a scavenger‑hunt‑style cybersecurity challenge) and AWS AI league, a hands‑on competition where participants build real‑world AI solutions using AWS tools, will test participants’ problem-solving and AI capabilities. During the summit’s Make-a-Thon competitions, engineers will develop and present new software products designed to enhance company and hotel operations and guest experiences. Winning teams will earn cash prizes, with top innovations considered for company-wide deployment.
“At its core, Mastery is about designing technical capabilities that will shape the next chapter of hospitality,” said Brian Kirkland, chief information officer, Choice Hotels International. “By engaging associates across the organization—not just engineers—we’re unlocking new opportunities to apply AI and emerging technologies to real business challenges. That collective investment in talent and expertise is accelerating innovation across the Choice Hotels system and translating into dependable, practical tools that help franchisees operate more efficiently, make smarter decisions, and grow their businesses with confidence.”
