As hospitality races toward automation, the industry must confront a deeper question: what moral and legal status should intelligent service robots hold? Dr. Anna Mattila, along with our host Amit Sharma guide listeners through the complexities of robot personhood, liability, governance, and the shifting boundaries between technology and humanity.

Reference papers:

Sharma, A., & Mattila, A. (2026). Rights and Responsibilities of Hospitality Service Robots. Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research. https://doi.org/10.1177/10963480251393749

Choi, S., Mattila, A. S., & Bolton, L. E. (2021). To Err is Human(-oid): How Do Consumers React to Robot Service Failure and Recovery?. Journal of Service Research, 24(3), 354-371. https://doi.org/10.1177/1094670520978798

Music credit: "West in Africa" by John Bartmann is licensed under a CC0 1.0 Universal License.