A tech revolution has been ushered in over the past decade, setting the stage for transforming the online space as we understand it. A new iteration of the internet, Web 3.0 is envisioned – powered on blockchain technology and catalysed by cryptocurrency and digital assets – with transparency, efficiency and decentralisation as its driving principles. Untapped business potential is foreseen in the orbit of decentralised finance (DeFi), unique digital assets and an ever-expanding metaverse. An examination of opportunities embedded in virtual and augmented reality, powered by crypto-finance and banking on the valuation and transfer of unique digital assets, should therefore be of interest even to the traditional, technologically conservative hotelier.

More than 400 hotels in 42 countries provide free hotel rooms for up to five days to Ukrainians fleeing the war, using the Hospitality-Helps.org platform. During the two weeks of the platform's operation, more than 20,000 Ukrainians have been accommodated in hotels in Europe and on other continents. The project started as a private initiative and has now become a global non-profit platform for the accommodation of Ukrainian refugees. The platform is also supported by Ukrainian volunteers who moved to Austria after the start of the war.