Facial recognition technology is going mainstream: Apple
added it to its iPhone X, MasterCard is using it to verify mobile payments, conferences
are adopting it to expedite registration and travel companies are using it to
provide secure, seamless processing of their customers.
Roommatik, a Spanish company that makes check-in kiosks for
hotels, is testing new facial identification technology from Gradiant known as
FaceIDNN.
“In Spain (and other countries) is very important for hotels
to verify the identity of guests at the moment of the entry, in fact, they are
required by the police to do that. So, the facial recognition is a very useful
functionality of our product to our customers,” says Roommatik representative Cristina
García.
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A camera in the kiosk scans the user’s face and compares it
to a photo on an ID card, driver’s license or passport that can be uploaded
during the reservation process or at the point of check-in.
Once the match is confirmed, the kiosk can dispense a key
card or regular key for the guest’s room.
Roommatik says it believes the service will be particularly
useful for small hotels, hostels and apartments that may not staff their reception desks around the clock.
The company expects to offer the facial recognition technology
as an optional service for its kiosk by the summer.