Smart Hospitality

Christina McDowell, Ph.D., is a Senior Lecturer of Management Communication at the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business and Director of Cornell’s Pillsbury Institute for Hospitality Entrepreneurship. An award-winning educator, Professor McDowell teaches courses in corporate communication, persuasive communication, management presentations, and business writing, as well as advising community-engaged learning projects.

Professor McDowell’s research interests start with communicative engagement and emphasize actively investigating social, civic, economic, and moral problems in corporate communication, integrated marketing communication, communication ethics, and communication illustrated by religious leaders. She is the co-author of “Corporate Communication and Integrated Marketing Communication: Audience Beyond Stakeholders in a Technological Age” (2023) and co-editor and contributing author of “The Civically Engaged Woman: The Rhetoric and Activism of the Silenced Voice” (2025).

Professor McDowell holds a Ph.D. in Rhetoric, concentrating in interpersonal and organizational communication and communication ethics; an M.A. in corporate communication; and a B.A. in communication from Duquesne University.

Krishna Sasank Talasila is a visionary entrepreneur and Cornell alumnus transforming the hospitality industry. As founder and CIO of Y Combinator-backed Stayflexi (W21), he pioneered an innovative flexible booking model and advanced AI platform that automates hotel operations and maximizes revenue from unsold rooms. A distinguished computer engineer specializing in scalable, fault-tolerant, cloud-based distributed systems, Krishna honed his expertise at Oracle America, developing frameworks for Oracle Cloud Infrastructure, with additional experience at SAP.

Under Krishna’s technical leadership, Stayflexi has engineered a groundbreaking platform with unmatched scalability and reliability, serving thousands of properties globally. His innovative work earned prestigious accolades that include Travel Startup of the Year by Entrepreneur India, a TiE50 Award, and selection for elite U.S. and Indian government-backed venture programs.

As a patented inventor, Krishna exemplifies the innovative application of computer science principles in hospitality technology. He actively networks with founders, exchanging knowledge about company building, product-market fit, and sales, while seeking judging and mentorship opportunities.

Ashwin Kamlani is a hospitality technology entrepreneur with two decades of experience at the intersection of travel, e-commerce, and innovation. After leading the global e-commerce division at Meliá Hotels International, Ashwin founded Regatta Travel Solutions, a pioneering reservations platform later acquired by Kognitiv Corporation.

Ashwin is the founder and CEO of Hyperfunnel, an AI-powered distribution platform designed to help hotels, cruise lines, and travel brands adapt as consumers increasingly turn to AI search engines for booking decisions. A graduate of Cornell University’s School of Hotel Administration (MMH ’03), Ashwin is passionate about helping the hospitality industry navigate the next wave of disruption by combining deep industry expertise with emerging AI technologies.

Ira Vouk is the acclaimed author of top industry publications “Revenue Management Made Easy,” “Hotel Tech 101,” and “Hospitality 2.0,” as well as the originator of the first-in-the-industry online learning course on hospitality technology, currently offered to large organizations all over the world.

A hospitality consultant and tech innovator, Ira brings two decades of practical industry experience, predominantly championing the role of revenue management and the use of data and technology to provide hospitality companies with insight to better lead their business strategy. She is also an HTNG/AHLA T100 member and a public speaker and educator on revenue and profit optimization, distribution, and hospitality tech.

Ira teaches Hospitality Technology at Payne School of Hospitality and Tourism Management at SDSU. She is also a contributing writer for various hospitality publications and platforms and a guest lecturer at various universities worldwide.