Online travel agency Priceline has partnered with Google Cloud in using Google’s Generative AI App Builder to build a conversational AI chatbot that will integrate the functions of its consumer-facing platform with its internal platform functions.
The aim is to help consumers plan and book their travel trips.
Priceline is a Booking Holdings company – the same company that owns Booking.com, Agoda, Rentalcars.com, KAYAK and OpenTable (restaurant reservations). So, it takes little imagination to envisage the quantities of data that will inform the chatbot.
According to Skift.com, Priceline says its new chatbot will be capable of answering questions such as: “What are the best four-star hotel options in midtown Manhattan within walking distance of Central Park?” and “Can you help me extend my hotel reservation for an additional night?”
The partnership is planning to release AI-powered technology that will make hotel bookings based on the customer’s particular interests and their proximity to tourist attractions, restaurants and activities, all displayed on map view with AI-generated descriptions. According to travelweekly.com, the AI will also provide descriptions of hotels’ neighbourhoods and seasonal events that occur in surrounding areas.
Internally, Priceline will use the AI technology to improve internal search engines, such as those for benefits and deposit information, to generate marketing content. (Priceline plans to release a marketing platform that generates written copy and images for use across all company channels.)
Although this is not the first Booking Holdings company to announce a generative AI partnership, it is the first to disclose the nitty-gritty of how it will integrate the AI into the business.
Other Booking Holdings companies, including Kayak and OpenTable, Expedia and Trip.com have also released prototype chatbots on their websites to gather data to improve their capabilities.
