Alibaba and Marriott partner for trial of facial recognition hotel check-in

Jul 13, 2018, 1:34 pm EDT | Chris Burt

Alibaba and Marriott International are partnering to trial facial recognition for the hotel chain’s guests, enabling them to skip front desk lines and cutting the check-in process from at least three minutes to less than one, KFGO reports.

Facial recognition will be available for check-in at two hotels in China later this month, and the companies hope to eventually roll the technology out globally. Hotel guests at Marriott locations in Hangzhou and Sanya can scan their IDs, have a photo taken, and input some personal details into an automated system, which confirms the booking and dispenses room keys. Hangzhou is also where KFC-affiliated KPRO launched a facial recognition payment system in partnership with Alipay.

Alibaba has also been developing facial recognition for self-service retail stores, with the first location in Hangzhou.

Gradiant showcased its facial recognition check-in solution earlier this year.