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Cyprus Hotel Occupancy Hits 80% in October, Strong Forecast for November

Cyprus hotels recorded a robust occupancy rate of 80% in October, surpassing last year’s performance for the same month, Thanos Michaelides, President of the Cyprus Hotels Association (PASYXE), announced this week. Michaelides expressed satisfaction with the results, noting the sector’s resilience and steady demand from international visitors.

Looking ahead to November, Michaelides shared that hotel occupancy is anticipated to remain encouraging, thanks to continued interest from key tourism markets. “Our goal is to extend the summer season into November,” he remarked, signalling the industry’s ambition to boost visitor numbers during the traditionally quieter month.

According to Michaelides, all hotels across Cyprus were operational in October. However, he noted that some establishments may temporarily close their doors as the month progresses, as part of a seasonal slowdown common during the cooler months.

When asked about the potential impacts of the ongoing conflict in the Middle East, Michaelides responded that key European markets, including the UK, Germany, and Poland, have effectively sustained visitor numbers, helping to offset any declines from other regions.

Zendesk Acquires Forethought To Strengthen AI Customer Support Tools

Zendesk, a company known for customer support software, has announced the acquisition of artificial intelligence startup Forethought. The deal is expected to close by the end of March and represents another step in the growing use of AI to automate customer service operations.

Strategic Innovation In Customer Service

Forethought has been developing AI tools for customer support automation for several years. The company first gained industry recognition after winning the TechCrunch Battlefield competition in 2018, well before the widespread adoption of generative AI tools.

Since then, Forethought has expanded its customer base to include companies such as Grammarly, Airtable, Upwork and Datadog. By 2025, the platform was processing more than one billion customer interactions each month, highlighting the growing role of automation in support operations.

Pioneering Leadership And Industry Recognition

Deon Nicholas, Forethought’s co-founder and chairman, hailed the acquisition as a milestone in a recent LinkedIn post. According to Nicholas, advances in AI over the past several years have accelerated adoption across multiple industries, particularly in areas that rely heavily on customer communication and service management.

Enhancing Zendesk’s Product Portfolio

The integration of Forethought’s technology is expected to expand Zendesk’s AI capabilities across its product suite. Company executives said the acquisition could accelerate development of several planned features by more than a year. These capabilities include specialized AI agents, systems that improve automatically through usage data and more advanced voice-based customer support tools. Zendesk has previously expanded its platform through acquisitions, including companies such as Zopim and BIME Analytics, which added messaging and analytics functionality to its products.

Implications For The Future

The acquisition reflects a broader shift in the software industry toward AI-driven automation of customer service tasks. Companies are increasingly using AI systems to handle routine inquiries while human agents focus on more complex cases. Zendesk’s move highlights how enterprise software providers are investing in AI technologies to improve efficiency and scale customer support operations as demand for digital service channels continues to grow.

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