The Middle East and Africa (MEA) markets are characterized by rapid growth, high owner influence, diverse operator models, and a much younger hotel infrastructure, says Ralph Melis, co-founder and chief operating officer (COO) of ExploreTECH.
How did ExploreTECH come into being? What gap did you observe in the market that existing players weren’t addressing?
ExploreTECH was born from a simple observation: hoteliers were making technology decisions with incomplete information, scattered sources, and no neutral place to compare vendors. Existing players focused on lead generation or editorial content—not true discovery, transparency, or structured knowledge. We saw a knowledge gap, an integration gap, and a trust gap. ExploreTECH was designed to solve all three by becoming the region’s first structured, multilingual, category-driven platform with verified data, expert guidance, and now an AI-native discovery layer.
Antoine Medawar has described ExploreTECH as a “Blue Ocean marketplace.” What makes the Middle East particularly suitable for this approach?
The Middle East is unique because its hotel landscape is expanding faster than anywhere else globally, but its technology knowledge infrastructure hasn’t kept pace. Owners, operators, and asset managers want innovation but lack centralized, unbiased guidance. There is no legacy marketplace model here, no entrenched incumbents—which creates a true Blue Ocean. This region is open to new platforms, new operating models, and rapid digital adoption, making it ideal for building a category-defining ecosystem.
How has the hospitality technology knowledge gap evolved in the MENA region? What are the most critical deficits you’re addressing?
The gap has shifted from “awareness” to “understanding.” Hoteliers know technology exists, but struggle to evaluate compatibility, ROI, integration complexity, and relevance to their business model. Our role is to simplify discovery, standardize comparisons, present verified product data, and translate global best practices into a regional context. The biggest deficits today are around integrations, system interoperability, AI readiness, and buyer–vendor fit.
Is the challenge in the Gulf about access to technology, understanding which technology to adopt, or something else?
The challenge is no longer access—global vendors are present. The issue is clarity: what to choose, how solutions fit together, and how to avoid costly mistakes. Decision-makers want structured knowledge and a trusted filter. MEA is a fast-moving yet risk-averse market, and ExploreTECH bridges that gap through transparency, regional relevance, and guided decision-making.
ExploreTECH offers both Arabic and English interfaces. How significant is language in knowledge transfer, and how is AI supporting this?
Language is a major barrier. Many stakeholders—especially owners, finance teams, HR, and government entities—prefer Arabic when evaluating technology. After introducing Arabic product profiles, adoption rose across Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Kuwait, and Oman, as language accelerates internal buy-in and includes non-technical teams.
To ensure accuracy, we partnered with Tarjama.com, a leading localization specialist. Their contextual translations, combined with our AI layer, allow us to deliver trusted bilingual product knowledge at scale, accelerating adoption across the MEA hospitality sector.
How does your tiered subscription model support smaller vendors?
We designed a tiered model that removes financial barriers. Startups can appear alongside global brands through structured categories, feature-level taxonomy, and verified data layers that reward clarity over marketing spend, leveling the playing field and encouraging innovation.
How does ExploreTECH PRO redefine tech advisory?
AI allows us to scale personalized guidance beyond human limits. ExploreTECH PRO processes more than 130,000 structured hospitality technology data points, delivering instant, tailored recommendations through natural-language interaction. While AI provides speed and structure, human advisors add context and intuition. Together, they redefine accessible, unbiased tech advisory.
What structurally differentiates MEA from Western hospitality markets?
MEA markets feature rapid growth, high owner influence, diverse operator models, and younger hotel infrastructure. Many properties are selecting foundational systems for the first time. Unlike the West, where technology optimizes mature operations, in MEA it forms the operational core.
(The interview was originally published in the Knowledge Economy issue of TRENDS, Dec. 2025)
