Google Flights: AI for Flexible Travel Deals
Google integrates AI into its flight search: In the future, spontaneous travelers should be able to search for offers in natural language.
"Flight Deals": Google's flight offers launch in Germany.
(Image: Google)
More than 12 years after the launch of Google's flight search in Germany, the company is expanding its offering – with AI. The new flight offers, which have been available in the USA as Flight Deals since August, are intended to allow users to express their travel wishes in natural language. However, the feature is not for travelers with fixed plans.
AI for flexible travel
According to Google, the flight offers are developed for "flexible travelers whose main goal is to save money on their next trip." The new feature, which is still in beta, is not intended to be used to "play around" with different dates, destinations, and filters to find the best deals, according to the company. Instead, users should "describe when, where, and how" they want to travel. The AI-based feature will then "do the rest," according to Google.
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After entering the travel wish, the AI searches Google Flights' inventory, which the company says includes more than 300 partners, and should then provide "the best results."
As Google writes in its announcement, the feature should understand users' travel intentions and interpret natural language. For example, if you search for "ten-day trip this winter to a city with great food – direct flights only" or "10-day ski vacation in January with fresh snow," you will then receive "the best available bargains" matching your search, including destinations you might not have considered.
(Image:Â Google)
Google further highlights that the new flight offers feature uses its in-house AI "to understand the nuances of what" you are looking for to identify suitable destinations. It also accesses real-time data from Google Flights to display "relevant, up-to-date options from hundreds of airlines and booking sites."
According to Google, the feature the feature will be rolled out in several countries such as Germany, Austria, and Switzerland in the coming week. Competitors like Booking or Expedia are unlikely to be pleased with Google's further foray into the travel booking market, especially for spontaneous travelers.
(afl)
