Forum: Make AI training for hospitality relevant to the industry
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Recent announcements in Budget 2026 and AI-Ready initiatives will give Singaporeans, who take selected courses, six months of free access to premium artificial intelligence tools, and expand AI training beyond tech sectors.
As someone interested in hospitality and food and beverage, I see a big opportunity to help front-line workers use AI confidently to serve guests better, instead of fearing that technology will take over their jobs.
AI can help hotels and restaurants draft replies to guest inquiries, summarise feedback, translate menus and design staff schedules more fairly, saving time for staff to focus on personal interaction. But this will work well only if training is practical, in simple language, and includes real examples from the industry, not just generic office scenarios.
I hope SkillsFuture, unions and industry partners can co-create AI courses tailored for hospitality workers, including part-timers and older staff, and allow them to practise with actual tools during work. When workers feel that AI is their assistant rather than their replacement, Singapore can stay competitive while keeping the warm, human service that visitors remember.
Madan Kishor
