Will hosts be replaced by AI?
Updated
Hosts score 41 of 100 for AI exposure. 48% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 14% today and speed up another 38%.
- 14% AI can do it
- 38% AI helps
- 48% Needs a person
Moderate exposure
Higher than 55% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 20 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 3 of them today, speeds up 9 and leaves 8 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Receive and record patrons' dining reservations. Online and AI phone booking tools handle reservation recording well. | 70% AI can do it |
| Answer telephone calls and respond to inquiries or transfer calls. Phone AI agents can answer inquiries and route calls today. | 65% AI can do it |
| Order or requisition supplies and equipment for tables and serving stations. Reorder systems and vendor portals automate most supply requisitions. | 65% AI can do it |
| Perform marketing and advertising services. AI drafts copy, images and campaigns, humans approve and publish. | 60% AI helps |
| Take and prepare to-go orders. Order intake can be digital, but packing to-go orders is physical. | 50% AI helps |
| Prepare cash receipts after establishments close, and make bank deposits. Software reconciles cash reports, but bank deposits are physical trips. | 50% AI helps |
| Inform patrons of establishment specialties and features. AI can draft specialty descriptions, but delivery is conversational. | 45% AI helps |
| Assign patrons to tables suitable for their needs and according to rotation so that servers receive an appropriate number of seatings. Software can track rotation, but reading the floor stays human. | 40% AI helps |
| Operate cash registers to accept payments for food and beverages. POS systems automate totals, but handling payments stays partly manual. | 40% AI helps |
| Confer with other staff to help plan establishments' menus. AI can generate menu ideas and costings, but planning is collaborative. | 40% AI helps |
Show the other 10 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Hire, train, and supervise food and beverage service staff. AI can draft postings and training materials, hiring stays people led. | 35% AI helps |
| Maintain contact with kitchen staff, management, serving staff, and customers to ensure that dining details are handled properly and customers' concerns are addressed. Chat tools help relay details, but live coordination stays human. | 30% AI helps |
| Supervise and coordinate activities of dining room staff to ensure that patrons receive prompt and courteous service. Live supervision of floor staff depends on in-person presence. | 15% Needs a person |
| Speak with patrons to ensure satisfaction with food and service, to respond to complaints, or to make conversation. Live conversation and complaint handling need human presence. | 12% Needs a person |
| Provide guests with menus. Physically handing menus to guests at the table. | 8% Needs a person |
| Greet guests and seat them at tables or in waiting areas. Greeting and seating guests requires physical presence. | 8% Needs a person |
| Direct patrons to coatrooms and waiting areas, such as lounges. Directing guests to coatrooms and lounges is physical guidance. | 8% Needs a person |
| Inspect dining and serving areas to ensure cleanliness and proper setup. Visual walk-through of cleanliness is physical inspection work. | 5% Needs a person |
| Assist other restaurant workers by serving food and beverages, or by bussing tables. Serving food and bussing tables is physical work. | 4% Needs a person |
| Inspect restrooms for cleanliness and availability of supplies, and clean restrooms when necessary. Cleaning restrooms is hands-on physical labor. | 3% Needs a person |
How hosts compare
All occupations (923)
Food preparation and serving (16)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $31,200 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 432,690 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- +3.4% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Resolve double bookings in OpenTable and Avenista Table Reservations
- Track table status and check-ins in Aloha Point-of-Sale
- Track wait times and table turns in Microsoft Excel
- Greet and seat guests at the host stand
- Walk dining areas and restrooms to check cleanliness and supplies
- Reconcile after-close cash reports and make bank deposits
Safer roles nearby
5 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about hosts and AI
Will AI replace hosts?
Partly. About 3 in 10 working hours for a host go to tasks AI can already do, mostly recording reservations and answering telephone calls. Greeting guests, seating them and handing out menus stay with people because they need a person physically present on the floor.
Which tasks is AI taking over for hosts?
Receiving and recording dining reservations scores 70 on exposure, the highest in this job, because OpenTable and online booking tools handle it well. Answering telephone calls scores 65 because phone AI agents can answer inquiries and route calls without a person on the line.
Which host tasks stay human?
Greeting guests and seating them scores 8, and directing guests to coatrooms and lounges also scores 8, because both need someone physically at the door and in the room. Inspecting dining areas scores 5 and bussing tables scores 4 for the same reason, since walking and lifting are physical work.
How can hosts stay valuable as AI takes over bookings?
Keep the floor running in Aloha Point-of-Sale and fix double bookings that online tools miss. Check AI booking confirmations against the actual floor plan. Use Microsoft Excel to track wait times and table turns, then bring those numbers to managers. Review and publish marketing drafts on Facebook before they go live.
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Next steps for hosts
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