Gaming Operators Expand AI Use for Marketing and Operations

According to a report from Jefferies, casinos are expected to use AI in new ways to engage customers, optimize their gaming floors, and manage their hotel operations, with Caesars Entertainment (CZR) and Brightstar Lottery (BRSL) among the biggest beneficiaries of this trend.

The analysis, authored by Jefferies analyst David Katz, finds that the strongest near-term AI impact across gaming, lodging, and leisure will fall on lodging. This is a meaningful consideration for integrated resort operators such as Caesars and MGM Resorts International, which run both casino floors and large hotel operations.

"We believe gaming operators are likely to expand the use of AI to support customer acquisition, engagement, and retention through more targeted and personalized promotional offers at greater speed and scale," observes the analyst. "Operators with the most extensive loyalty ecosystems, including CZR, appear best positioned to capture incremental value from these AI-enabled strategies and to defend, if not modestly expand, share versus later adopters," stated Katz.

Caesars stands out for its Caesars Rewards loyalty program, which counts more than 65 million members and ranks as the largest in the gaming industry. That scale provides the company with a substantial data foundation for AI-driven behavioral analysis and personalized promotions.

"AI-driven analytics should also enhance machine placement and mix decisions across gaming floors," adds Katz. "There is additional opportunity to deploy AI agents to automate routine guest interactions, such as room bookings; however, the prevalence of union labor suggests limited near‑term displacement risk. In short, we expect the labor impact from AI in customer-facing roles to be limited."

Katz sees the use of AI enabling lottery operators to develop games faster and enhance their offerings with information gained from player data and sales trends. Brightstar Lottery is one of the companies highlighted as an important player in the use of AI that crosses jurisdictional boundaries.

"BRSL is also a relative beneficiary given its ability to accelerate content development and optimize game performance through AI-driven tools," says Katz.