How Generative AI could transform the way we travel and transport?

Back in March, my wife and I were planning a short holiday. We knew we had already missed the boat for the April long weekend. Now, the next viable option was the coronation weekend in May. But taking the decision on a destination is always a long process, especially with a toddler around.?This time, we did something different. We used Chat GPT.

In the past, trip planning took ages. We'd go through dozens of travel blogs, watch travel vlogs, map out routes, check the weather forecast, identify things to do, sequence our day-to-day activities, and of course find child-friendly hotels and activities that would keep our toddler engaged.

This time, the experience was completely different. The plan from Chat GPT looked as if it was tailor-made by a travel agent who had carefully taken into account all of our requirements. The day-by-day plan was perfect - detailed to-do’s sequenced by time of the day that aligned with our preferences. Chat GPT offered four possible location alternatives, but it highly recommended Cornwall given the time of the year and our constraints. And so, we ended up selecting Cornwall.

By May, I had also gotten through the waitlist for Google Bard access. Unlike Chat GPT 3.5, Bard had access to real-time data like weather near-cast, local events etc.?

During the trip, as anticipated, some of the days were completely whitewashed with rain. The weather changes quite rapidly during the day in Cornwall region. We realised that we had to be patient and be ready to improvise our day’s plan based on how the weather evolved. So we started using Bard to replan our days, parts of which got disrupted due to cloud and rainfall.?

We replanned but specified our ‘prompts’ that we had to adhere to, like the lunch time of my toddler, the best places in Land’s End where we can try Cornish Pasty, a child-friendly beach in St Ives, or a must-do stop at Hell’s Mouth for a picture. The whole experience felt like chatting to a travel expert with years of local knowledge who could seamlessly (and convincingly) create a personalised itinerary with different alternatives.?

How can Generative AI change the way we travel and use transport??

?Of the many things that I like about my profession, one is that I can directly experience the good and bad as a consumer. And then as a consultant, I get to work on solving problems teaming up with a very talented set of individuals both within our client organisations and at my own organisation.?

Switching from my traveller hat to a consultant hat,?I see Generative AI is already disrupting the way we make decisions. When it comes to processing a lot of data to make decisions, our mind as a consumer tries to externalise the decision making. The ease of interaction, specifying the constraints and the structured response to our needs can help make decisions faster?(and of course, sometime biased). But we are just getting started. The possibilities are endless.?

Let’s look at few use cases where Generative AI can be used in the travel industry.

1. Personalised travel planning: Generative AI can be used to create personalized travel itineraries that are tailored to your interests and preferences. Travel needs vary - if you are travelling solo or with friends or as a family or, like us, with a toddler who has very strong opinions and preferences. This could mean making decisions on specific hotels, restaurants, and activities, as well as suggesting the best time of year to travel.

2. Real-time travel updates: Generative AI can be used to provide travellers with real-time updates on their travel plans, such as flight delays, cancellations, and changes to weather conditions. If enable Generative AI with “context awareness” such as your mobile location, it can be used to help travellers make informed decisions on replanning.

3. Virtual tours: Generative AI can be used to create virtual tours of hotels, restaurants, and other travel destinations. This can be a helpful way for travellers to get a feel for a place before they book their trip.

4. Chatbots: Generative AI can be used to create chatbots that can answer travellers’ questions about travel destinations, hotels, and other travel-related topics. This can be a helpful way for travellers to get quick and easy answers to their questions.

5. Translation services: Generative AI can be used to provide translation services for travellers who are not fluent in the language of their destination. This can be a helpful way for travellers to communicate with locals and get around.

6. Budgeting and currency conversion: Generative AI can be used to provide currency conversion services for travellers. This can be a helpful way for travellers to budget their trip and avoid overspending.

7. Weather forecasts: Generative AI can be used to provide weather forecasts for travel destinations. This information can be used to help travellers pack appropriately and plan their activities accordingly.

8. Event planning: Generative AI can be used to help travellers plan events, such as weddings, birthdays, and corporate retreats. This can be a helpful way for travellers to save time and money on planning their events.

9. Personalized marketing: Generative AI can be used to create personalized marketing campaigns for travel destinations. This can be a helpful way for travel destinations to reach their target audience and encourage them to book a trip.

10. Fraud detection: Generative AI can be used to detect fraudulent activity, such as credit card fraud and identity theft. This can help to protect travellers from financial loss.

11. Customer service: Generative AI can be used to provide customer service to travellers. This can be a helpful way for travellers to get help with their travel plans and resolve any issues that they may encounter.

12. Trip reviews: Generative AI can be used to generate trip reviews for travel destinations. This information can be used to help travellers make informed decisions about their travel plans.

13. Travel safety: Generative AI can be used to provide travel safety information to travellers. This information can be used to help travellers stay safe while they are traveling.

14. Travel logistics: Generative AI can be used to manage travel logistics, such as booking flights, hotels, and rental cars. This can help to save travellers time and hassle.

15. Trip planning tools: Generative AI can be used to create travel planning tools that can help travellers plan their trips more easily. These tools can include things like itinerary planners, budget calculators, and packing lists.

16. Travel research tools: Generative AI can be used to create travel research tools that can help travellers learn more about their travel destinations. These tools can include things like maps, guidebooks, and weather forecasts.

17. Travel education: Generative AI can be used to create travel education programs that can teach travellers about different cultures and destinations. These programs can help travellers to better understand the places they are visiting and make the most of their trips.

18. Travel inspiration: Generative AI can be used to create travel inspiration tools that can help travellers find new and exciting places to visit. These tools can include things like travel blogs, photo galleries, and video tours.

19. Travel gamification: Generative AI can be used to create travel games and activities that can make travel more fun and engaging. These games and activities can help travellers to learn about different cultures and destinations in a fun and interactive way.

20. Travel personalisation: Generative AI can be used to personalize the travel experience for each individual traveller. This can include things like recommending specific hotels, restaurants, and activities, as well as suggesting the best time of year to travel.

The role of Generative AI can go beyond customer services to core transport operations. Few use cases to look at:

1. Real-time traffic monitoring and prediction: Generative AI can be used to monitor traffic in real time and predict future traffic conditions. This information can be used to help drivers plan their routes and avoid traffic congestion.

2. Fleet management: Generative AI can be used to manage fleets of vehicles, such as trucks, buses, and taxis. This can include things like scheduling routes, tracking fuel consumption, and managing maintenance.

3. Public transportation planning: Generative AI can be used to plan public transportation systems, such as buses, trains, and subways. This can include things like designing routes, setting fares, and managing demand.

4. Freight transportation: Generative AI can be used to manage freight transportation, such as shipping and delivery. This can include things like scheduling shipments, tracking packages, and managing inventory.

5. Air traffic control: Guiding planes to and from approach to runways and from runways to parking block. This can also help to ensure the safety and efficiency of air travel.

6. Maritime traffic control: Generative AI can be used to control maritime traffic, such as guiding ships to and from ports.

7. Railroad Timetabling: Generative AI can be used to develop and manage timetable, and simplify the way passengers consume the information.

8. Vehicle routing and scheduling: Generative AI can be used to route vehicles and schedule their trips. This can help to improve the efficiency of transportation and reduce costs.

9. Load planning and optimisation: Generative AI can be used to plan and optimize the loading of vehicles. This can help to improve the efficiency of transportation and reduce costs.

10. Vehicle maintenance and repair: Generative AI can be used to manage vehicle maintenance and repair. This can help to improve the reliability of vehicles and reduce costs.

11. Fleet safety: Generative AI can be used to improve fleet safety. This can include things like detecting and preventing accidents, monitoring driver behavior, and managing risk.

12. Customer service: Generative AI can be used to provide customer service for transportation companies. This can include things like answering questions, resolving complaints, and providing support.

13. Marketing and sales: Generative AI can be used to market and sell transportation services. This can include things like creating personalized marketing campaigns, generating leads, and closing deals.

14. Pricing and revenue management: Generative AI can be used to price and manage revenue for transportation services. This can help to maximize profits and ensure that prices are competitive.

15. Capacity planning: Generative AI can be used to plan capacity for transportation services. This can include things like determining the number of vehicles needed, the number of employees needed, and the amount of inventory needed.

16. Risk management: Generative AI can be used to manage risk for transportation companies. This can include things like identifying and mitigating risks, such as accidents, delays, and disruptions.

17. Safety and Compliance: Generative AI can be used to help transportation companies comply with regulations. This can include things like tracking emissions, monitoring safety, and managing security.

18. Sustainability: Generative AI can be used to help transportation companies become more sustainable. This can include things like optimizing routes, reducing emissions, and improving efficiency.

19. Innovation: Generative AI can be used to help transportation companies innovate and develop new products and services. This can help companies to stay ahead of the competition and meet the needs of their customers.

20. Making transportation more accessible: Generative AI can be used to make transportation more accessible by providing real-time information and assistance to people with special needs. This can help to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to travel safely and independently.

What could be the pitfalls?

Generative AI is a powerful tool that can be used to improve the travel and transport industry in many ways. However, it is important to be aware of the potential for misuse. Some of the ways that generative AI could be misused in the travel and transport industry include:

• Discrimination: Generative AI could be used to create biased algorithms that discriminate against certain groups of people. For example, an algorithm could be used to price tickets differently for people of different races or ethnicities.
• Fraud: Generative AI could be used to create fake tickets, reservations, and other documents. This could be used to commit fraud, such as selling fake tickets or generating fake user reviews that can be perceived as real.
• Cybersecurity: Generative AI could be used to create new types of cyberattacks. For example, an attacker could use generative AI to create fake websites or emails that look like they are from legitimate companies. This could be used to steal personal information or money.
• Privacy: Generative AI could be used to collect and track personal data without people's knowledge or consent. This data could then be used to target people with advertising or to discriminate against them.

How some of the travel and transport companies are using Generative AI or Large Language Models (LLM)?

• One of the largest travel intermediary company is using generative AI to create personalized travel recommendations for its users.
• An online flight booking company is using LLM to generate natural language descriptions of flights, making it easier for users to find the information they need.
• A global ride sharing company is using LLM to improve its customer service chatbot.
• An European airline is using LLM to create a virtual assistant that can answer customer questions and provide support
• An American logistics giant is using LLM predict future demand for shipping services. This information is used to optimize the company's fleet of vehicles and warehouses, which helps to reduce costs and improve efficiency.

What the travel and transport companies should do to adopt Generative AI?

1. Start small and scale up: Start by?using generative AI in few of your use cases. Ring fence your problem statements, define the scope and success criteria. Once you've?validated the outcome,?rapidly scale up and expand your use of generative AI to other areas of business.

2. Partner with experts: Generative AI is evolving, so it's helpful to partner with experts who can help you implement it successfully. There are many companies that specialise in generative AI, and they can provide you with the guidance, support and accelerators you need to get started.

3. Get the basics right with data: Generative AI requires large amount of data to train. If an organisation’s IT landscape is fragmented, then a data strategy needs to underpin the Generative AI aspiration. While companies can kick start experimenting with LLMs, but a scaled implementation would be often coupled with a data modernisation initiative.

4. Be patient: Generative AI is still a developing technology, so it's important to be patient with it. Let’s not expect it to solve all of our problems overnight. Let’s give it time to brew!

5. Don’t forget organisation culture: Using generative AI is not just a technology change. In most cases it will involve operating model change which involves people and culture. Assess the impact of change and plan what you need to do to enable operational transformation.

6. Be ethical: Last but definitely not the least. Generative AI is a powerful tool, and it's important to use it ethically. Organisations needs to have policies and frameworks in place to make sure that they are using generative AI in a way that's fair, transparent, and respectful to its stakeholders.

Disclaimer : The views expressed in this article are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of my employer or any of my professional associates. ChatGPT and Bard, large language models from OpenAI and Google AI, respectively were used for research.