Union Square Plaza Hotel uses Cloudbeds’ open API to build technology around how the property actually operates

OPERATIONS

Union Square Plaza Hotel is an independent hotel in San Francisco’s theater district that is experimenting with AI-assisted tools built around its own operations. Using Cloudbeds’ open API, the team is exploring new ways to work with hotel data across rates, inventory, reservations, availability, and distribution.

Why it matters: Cloudbeds gives Union Square Plaza direct access to its hotel data, allowing Owner Sal Patel to develop custom AI-assisted tools without an engineering background or relying exclusively on pre-built integrations. The result is greater freedom to experiment with technology designed around how the hotel actually operates.

Using Cloudbeds as its core hospitality platform and the Cloudbeds API as a development layer, Union Square Plaza is building AI-assisted workflows that can bring together operational and commercial data, answer questions in plain English, and support faster, more informed decisions.

Top 3 Core Objectives: Union Square Plaza wanted more than a modern PMS. The team needed a connected platform that could support day-to-day hotel operations while providing the flexibility to experiment with AI and build tools around the property’s specific workflows.

Access hotel data directly: The team wanted API access to its operational data rather than depending entirely on existing third-party integrations. This would give the hotel more freedom to decide how its data could be used across new applications and workflows.
Simplify revenue decisions: Analyzing availability, occupancy, reservations, and rates across reports and spreadsheets can be time-consuming. The hotel wanted to explore an AI-assisted approach that could bring relevant information together and make pricing analysis easier to manage.
Build without engineering knowledge: As a hotel operator rather than a software developer, Sal wanted to test ideas without hiring an in-house engineering team for every project. Cloudbeds’ API, combined with current AI development tools, has lowered the technical barrier to experimenting with custom solutions.

Innovators Mentioned

Cloudbeds

Sal Patel

Owner

Union Square Plaza Hotel

"I wanted access to our hotel data so we could experiment with AI and build tools specifically around the way we operate Union Square Plaza Hotel. I did not want our ability to innovate to depend entirely on whether a particular third-party integration already existed."

Sal Patel

Owner

👍 Owner Sal Patel said that Open API access gives Union Square Plaza the freedom to build technology around its own operational priorities.:

"I wanted access to our hotel data so we could experiment with AI and build tools specifically around the way we operate Union Square Plaza Hotel. I did not want our ability to innovate to depend entirely on whether a particular third-party integration already existed."

⚖️ The selection process: During their research process, Sal Patel evaluated Cloudbeds's product differentiators, customer support, and holistic value as a strategic partner and ultimately decided that Cloudbeds was the best fit solution:

Owner Sal Patel said, about their decision: "The combination of Cloudbeds’ Open API and AI is particularly exciting for independent hotels. It gives a hotel operator without an engineering background the opportunity to create technology tailored to their own property rather than waiting for someone else to build it."

📈 The results: Cloudbeds’ open API has given Union Square Plaza a foundation for experimenting with AI on its own terms. While these tools continue to evolve, the hotel can already develop around real operational needs rather than waiting for a vendor or third-party integration to provide the functionality it wants.