Blockchain, Metaverse, ChatGPT – How is technological innovation changing the travel sector?
Full house at the ITB Berlin conference: on Tuesday afternoon, three experts presented their assessments of the potential offered by new technologies. Caroline Bremner of Euromonitor International reported on the potential for growth of the metaverse, while Leila Summer, CEO of PlayToChange, explained how ChatGPT can suggest an itinerary in seconds. Professor Dr. Alexander Knauer from the Blockchain Competence Center at Hochschule Mittweida explained that although blockchain technologies are currently in the hype phase, it will take two to four years before they are in practical use in the travel sector, which makes it wise to get to know them now.
The metaverse, a virtual 3D world where anyone, as an avatar, can move limitlessly from one place to another, offers enormous potential, according to Caroline Bremner, especially as today’s young people have aged. “When it comes to payment transactions, customer loyalty programs and travel, we are facing major disruptions,” Bremner said. She pointed out that Barbados is already represented with an embassy in the metaverse, and that cities like Seoul and Helsinki are investing in this new technology.
Polls have revealed that choosing and pre-experiencing destinations may become the second most used form of the metaverse, after games. A number of hotels and airlines are already working on metaverse concepts, and as new forms of computing glasses and high-performance 6G networks become available, Bremner predicts the technology will really take off, with Asia leading the way.
Since November 2022, the number of people using ChatGPT has expanded tremendously, Leila Summer reported. The new AI technology is first accepted because it makes it possible to talk to a computer almost as if it were human. Second, it provides easy access to information, at an unprecedented speed, and moreover, the underlying algorithms are constantly learning. “It will continue to expand and has the potential to disrupt the way we work”, emphasized Summer.
However, ChatGPT should be seen less as a threat to jobs, but rather as an enhancer and a resource. ChatGPT can help with writing emails, reducing the length of blog posts and preparing product descriptions. This form of artificial intelligence is also capable of suggesting an itinerary within seconds. This can benefit end users and of course travel agencies and tour operators.
Blockchain technologies are also here to stay, of this Professor Dr. Alexander Knauer at the Blockchain Competence Center at Hochschule Mittweida, is certain. Work is already underway at his university with applications for the tourism sector. Examples he gave included a mobility concept for a small town that uses blockchain technology to enable potential users to find scooters, and new blockchain-based travel insurance to cover when trains run late. Alexander Knauer admitted that this technology is currently in the hype phase of the Gartner hype cycle and that it may take several years before it can really be effectively implemented. Nevertheless, he recommended that travel companies should already investigate this development, not on their own, but in collaboration with educational institutions, start-ups and established companies.
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