Generative artificial intelligence and its applications for the travel industry captured a lot of attention in 2023 with many larger companies diving in with plugins and travel planning tools.
Research from management consultancy Oliver Wyman revealed that consumers are already embracing the technology and taking up the travel recommendations, with certain cohorts such as loyalty program elite members more invested than the rest of the population.
So as 2024 gets underway, what should travel suppliers be thinking about as they formulate a strategy around generative AI? And what should their first steps be?
In a discussion in the PhocusWire studio at The Phocuswright Conference 2023, Scot Hornick, partner and head of travel and leisure at Oliver Wyman, discussed consumer readiness for the technology and the need for the industry to put generative AI at the "center of their agenda, particularly suppliers who might be looking to preserve direct booking share."
"The key thing is that there is quite a bit of value at stake," he said. "If you look at the progress that travel suppliers have made in terms of achieving more direct bookings share, if that was to be unwound, there could be $1.8 billion of commissions revenue at stake just across the hotel, airline and cruise domains we looked at."
Watch the full discussion with PhocusWire senior reporter Linda Fox.