Automation is primarily going to affect larger hotels with more desk staff. Midsize hotels in the 50-150 room range are usually lightly staffed with 1 or 2 front desk clerks as it is, and you can't cut back there without leaving the hotel unstaffed at night (which, of course, small B&Bs and hostels already do). I've seen it in Vegas, where they've already rolled out self-check in kiosks at the huge Strip hotels and you never have to interact with a staff member, although there is still one there tending the kiosks, just like at grocery stores. There's more to the job than sitting around checking people in and out, so there is job security for the foreseeable future, until owners decide that they're willing to leave their hotels unattended at night.