We look forward to welcoming restaurateur and author Will Guidara to the Arena main stage, alongside trend forecasters The Future Laboratory and AI expert Jitendra Jain, to share their insights on service, artificial intelligence, and the future of travel. For our Workshop Day, we're excited to introduce artist Monja Gentschow, hospitality strategist Yamil Errasti, and House of Manus, a Swiss design practice.

If there’s a table where great service is being reimagined, hospitality visionary Will Guidara has a special seat at it.

As this year’s Arena explores how to maintain meaningful human connection in an increasingly AI-driven world, we couldn’t think of anyone better to inspire us than the bestselling author of Unreasonable Hospitality and co-executive producer of the Emmy-winning series The Bear.

“In my world, the food, the service, and the design are simply the ingredients in the recipe of human connection. Our role is to make people feel seen.” – Will Guidara

Will first made his mark as the co-owner of New York City’s legendary restaurant Eleven Madison Park, culminating in it being awarded first place in The World's 50 Best Restaurants. Rapidly, his notion of being present and truly seeing guests sparked a movement that goes far beyond serving food on a plate—and has since inspired individuals across industries to think with a hospitality mindset, too.

“When you work in hospitality—and I believe that whatever you do for a living, you can choose to be in the hospitality business—you have the privilege of joining people as they celebrate the most joyful moments in their lives,” Will writes in Unreasonable Hospitality. Besides his book and the iconic TV series, The Bear, Will is the host of The Welcome Conference and a recipient of the Wall Street Journal Innovator Award.

As the world’s leading futures consultancy, The Future Laboratory has helped over 1,000 businesses in 50 countries make sense of what’s next. Founded in 2000, the London-based firm is known for turning foresight into action. While Chris has shaped The Lab’s reputation in the world of luxury, with a background that includes a decade-long column in Luxury Briefing and regular appearances at the Modern Affluence Summit, Walpole, and the British Fashion Council, Martin leads the Strategic Foresight practice, bringing 25 years of editorial, research, and entrepreneurial depth to The Lab’s methodology—delivering future thinking with commercial impact. 

For Jitendra Jain, a hotel loyalty marketing and AI trailblazer, the future of hospitality is inseparable from AI. A self-described tinkerer since the age of eleven, he was captivated by the internet as a playground for creativity and connection. After more than two decades shaping digital strategy in hospitality—leading teams across loyalty marketing, digital, and partnerships—he felt the same spark reignite when generative AI emerged in 2022.

Jitendra frames AI’s promise in four words—“Less Routine, More Remarkable”—a reminder that technology should strip away the mechanical so people can lean into the meaningful. In hospitality, that means deeper personalization, sharper decision-making, and a more human approach to service. Not by replacing people, he insists, but by giving them superpowers.

“To me, generative AI feels like the second coming of the internet: personal, creative, and packed with potential.” – Jitendra Jain