Rise of the robots
Business Travel Report
Artificial Intelligence
Last year I visited IBM’s research laboratory in Zurich, where they are working on Watson, an evolving artificial intelligence (AI) platform that is being trained how to think like a human. From weather forecasting to building chatbots, its applications are seemingly limitless and available to any individual or business wanting to experiment with it. Watson’s abilities include image recognition (essential in self-driving cars, for example), natural language processing and translation, and even emotion analysis.
Over the past couple of years a wide variety of travel companies have started employing Watson, the world’s leading AI, to perform unique tasks: Japan Rail East has been dabbling with it to analyse customer inquiries at call centres; Korean Air has been using Watson’s mighty brain to crunch historical fleet maintenance records; the travel search engine Zumata has integrated Watson’s cognitive services to improve the hotel booking experience by allowing people to converse with a virtual agent; and Hilton has piloted Connie, a robot concierge that is able to talk to guests.
Several other hotel groups have been exploring the benefits of robotic staff.
Marriott’s Aloft has a robot butler called “Botlr” that delivers amenities to guest rooms in about half a dozen US hotels, while M Social in Singapore has Aura and Ausca, who do front-of-house work and even cooking. Also in Singapore, Shangri- La’s youth-oriented sub-brand Hotel Jen has employed Jeno and Jena at its Orchardgateway and Tanglin properties to help with room service requests. Standing at about one metre tall, they trundle along at 2.5kph and have sensors that allow them to use lifts and escalators. Last November, a report from McKinsey & Company suggested that by 2030, as many as 800 million workers around the globe could be replaced by robots.
SPEAKING TO AN AI BARMAID
In February, the Andaz Liverpool Street hotel in London created an AI landlady called Lady Abercorn, with whom drinkers can have a simple conversation via Facebook Messenger (the questions you can ask are preselected). Here is the conversation ABTA Magazine had with her…
LADY ABERCORN: Tell me, what do you want to know?
ABTA MAGAZINE: Who are you?
LADY ABERCORN: Well, that would be telling… [She has inserted a GIF here of a young Asian woman wagging her finger.] All you need to know [is] that I’ve been around a very long time and I’ve seen lots of things you can’t imagine and things you’d wish you could forget.
ABTA MAGAZINE: New menus?
LADY ABERCORN: You heard right! We’ve made up an all-new menu inspired by my travels and my love for East London. Take a look. [Link to menu is sent.]
ABTA MAGAZINE: Any food pictures?
LADY ABERCORN: Looks damn tasty, right? [Cue pictures of harissa-glazed aubergine, pork roast, and fish and chips.]
ABTA MAGAZINE: How do I find you?
LADY ABERCORN: We’re very easy to find, even after a few shandies. Follow the directions below – we’re on the corner with the lovely opaque windows. [Link to Google Maps is copied in.]
Within the online world, artificial intelligence is being used to make interacting with the internet more humanlike. The travel metasearch engine Skyscanner says it is harnessing AI to “create a marketplace for each traveller that is personalised to suit their needs and preferences”, based on data generated by that individual. In 2016 it led the way in launching chatbots on Facebook Messenger and Skype, as well as a voice-activated “skill” for Amazon Alexa. Skyscanner says: “Travellers can ask for any flight itinerary, as well as get inspiration and suggestions for where they can go.”
The headlines
Lufthansa Group launches handbaggage- only transatlantic fares
This summer, Lufthansa, Swiss, Brussels Airlines and Austrian Airlines are launching more affordable fares for those willing to travel with hand luggage only on flights to North America. Known as “economy light”, the fares will be “the least expensive option for price-conscious passengers who do not require any ticket flexibility”. Travellers will continue to receive free food and drink onboard.
Delta to reinstate India flights
The recent Open Skies alliance between the US and the UAE and Qatar has prompted Delta to announce the reinstatement of flights to Mumbai in 2019. The airline is yet to make a decision on where the flights will depart from, but New York and Delta’s home base in Atlanta are both in the running. Delta said: “The framework created by the agreement allows Delta to move forward with service to India, a market long impacted by government-subsidised Middle Eastern airlines.”
Frasers boosts China presence
Frasers Hospitality is planning to almost double the number of properties it has in China to 25 by 2021. The Singaporean company’s chief executive, Choe Peng Sum, said: “China is our fastest-growing market. The upcoming openings across tier one and tier two cities in China reinforces Frasers Hospitality’s confidence in the country’s long-term growth potential.” Locations will include Nanchang, Heifei, Chengdu, Nanjing, Shanghai and Wuhan.
Virgin flies to Las Vegas from 2019
From March 31 next year, Virgin Atlantic will be flying Sin City services from London Heathrow instead of Gatwick, moving the flight to its Terminal 3 Heathrow hub. There will also be a change in aircraft; the route will be operated with newer B787-9 aircraft rather than ageing B747s. One of the reasons it cites is growing demand from corporates travelling for business.
Marriott and IHG drop mini bottles
Over the next six months or so, Marriott is to replace mini bottles of shampoo, conditioner and shower gel with large dispensers at 1,500 of its properties across five brands (including AC Hotels) most geared towards business travellers. Intercontinental Hotels Group is taking similar steps at Holiday Inn Express, Staybridge Suites, Candlewood Suites and Avid Hotels.
In January, Heathrow Airport began allowing customers to ask Alexa about flight delays. Uber, National Rail, Ryanair, Virgin Trains, Expedia and easyJet also provide voice-activated services via Amazon’s smart home speakers, while the Wynn hotel in Las Vegas has installed them as command centres in every one of its 4,748 rooms – if you want to close the curtains, just ask. Google, too, has been investing heavily in voice recognition, with its Home speaker acting as a similar kind of digital assistant. In theory, for the time-pressed business traveller, these are welcome innovations.
SITA’s Air Transport IT Trends Insights 2017 report suggests that more than 50 per cent of airlines are to adopt major AI programmes by 2020. In April, the UK government announced a £1 billion deal to put Britain at the forefront of artificial intelligence development and build its status as an AI research hotspot. But with fears around the erosion of privacy and the rise of the machines, was Stephen Hawking on to something when he warned that the birth of AI could be the “worst event in the history of our civilisation”? It is hard to be too afraid of cute robo-butlers taking control of hotels, but we are in the early days of experimentation.
John Rogers, senior vice-president of brands and franchise ops for Hilton in EMEA, says that rolling out robostaff across its properties might not be a priority. “While robotics continues to grow and develop, we maintain that service from knowledgeable team members is still at the core of what we do – we are in the business of people serving people.” Even Skyscanner admits that AI cannot always compensate for the human touch when it comes to travel. “We believe it’s about maintaining the correct balance between making things more effective and delivering value to people through a more personalised and frictionless search experience. There will always be a place for high-quality, caring human interaction.” ABTAmag.com
Neil Armorgie, chief executive of WIN and global product director for Advantage Travel Partnership, the UK’s largest independent travel agent group
How long have you been a business traveller?
I first travelled on business when I was 22 on a trip to New York, 34 years ago. Most recently I was in Miami, where we were hosting the inaugural Independent TMC Summit. This was followed by the Advantage Travel Partnership annual conference. My week involved four flights, two hotels, seven presentations and 450-plus attendees.
What are you working on at the moment?
On June 12, we launched our new division, Advantage Meetings and Events. Members benefit from a mix of products to meet the business needs of their clients and the level of their own in-house expertise. Assistance will range from full-service meetings management to venue finding, training and development.
How are you staying ahead in the world of business travel?
We have created a new strategic role – “head of innovation”. The appointed individual will keep abreast of all technological developments in the business travel market, to provide members with best-in-class technology solutions.
What are you optimistic about?
Brexit and President Trump have so far had little effect on business travel spend for our members, but we monitor with interest. Statistics from the Global Business Travel Association show that US$1.3 trillion was spent on business travel in 2016, and this is predicted to grow at around 6 per cent per annum for the next four years. This means that travel management companies will continue to have a vital role to play.
Comments are closed, but trackbacks and pingbacks are open.