How AI and robotics are changing the way we travel

Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics are revolutionising most industries and the travel industry is no exception.

The industry is beginning to explore machine learning and natural language processing to provide greater efficiency to travellers.

Most travellers have already come into contact with AI when booking a hotel or flight via an online travel agency (OTA), such as TripAdvisor or Expedia. Data-driven recommendation tools are used by OTAs to help users receive recommendations based on previous searches or similar bookings others have made.

Hotels are also known to use data to change room pricing based on weather, booking patterns, vacancy, room types and more. AI will continue to improve data collection and allow hotels to adjust prices further to drive more direct options for travellers and stay competitive.

A great example of AI is Hipmunk, which provides travellers with the information they need to find the right flights, hotels, car hires, and holiday packages. The app uses AI-powered bots to help users save time and money by comparing top travel sites to show the perfect flight or hotel at the cheapest price. This makes it easy to visually compare results to choose the best option.

Furthermore, AI travel assistants or chatbots can help travellers plan an entire trip. Chatbots can provide vast amounts of information including the best hotel deals and suggestions about tourist attractions.

Users can even ask them for airport and traffic information, which makes them the perfect travel tool while on the go. The use of chatbots will continue to progress as more travellers use voice-controlled devices such as Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri for recommendations.

Chatbots are also moving beyond the cyber world and into the physical world in places such as hotels. Rose, an AI concierge at The Cosmopolitan Hotel in Las Vegas, was recently introduced to help improve guest services.

When guests check in at the hotel, they receive Rose’s phone number to text with any hotel inquiries, and the chatbot can then provide a variety of options and answer questions during a guest’s stay.

Interest in applying big data to the travel industry is also on the rise. Monitoring social networks is a strategic task and is becoming increasingly difficult to do manually.

Most travellers share photos and experiences about their holidays on their social networks, and many travel-related reviews are shared on websites every day. Sentiment analysis identifies and categorises opinions expressed from a review to determine the writer’s attitude towards a topic.

In a fast-paced market, it’s important to be able to review information in near-real time to help make adjustments. Hotels and airlines use analytics to measure what organisational attention is needed. They then use this feedback to help make improvements for travellers.

The aim of AI and robotics is to simplify the work of tourism industry professionals with powerful tools and technologies, and make an important difference in terms of profit and customer satisfaction.
AI is not about replacing human interaction. Instead, it is a tool that can facilitate a more personalised and seamless travel experience for all.

Matthew Goss is managing director, ANZ, SAP Concur

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