Just in Time for the Spring Travel Season, KAYAK Launches Suite of AI-Powered Tools

Rhea-AI Summary

KAYAK introduces innovative AI products like PriceCheck and Ask KAYAK to enhance travel planning experience. PriceCheck allows price comparison via uploaded flight itinerary screenshots, while Ask KAYAK offers personalized search results through text entries. Additional features include Provider Quality Scores, ticket option comparisons, live updates on KAYAK Trips, and secure Passkeys for sign-in.

Market Research Analyst

The introduction of KAYAK PriceCheck presents a significant advancement in the travel industry's competitive landscape. By integrating a screenshot-based price comparison tool, KAYAK leverages user convenience and enhances the decision-making process for consumers. This approach not only streamlines the search experience but potentially increases user retention and acquisition for KAYAK.

From a market research perspective, the adoption of such technology could shift consumer behavior towards more frequent and reliant use of KAYAK's platform, impacting the market share of online travel agencies (OTAs). Additionally, the Provider Quality Scores feature could further influence customer choice by promoting transparency and trust, which are critical factors in consumer decisions.

The long-term implications may include a higher standard of service across the industry as competitors strive to match or exceed the benchmarks set by KAYAK's new features. Moreover, the focus on user experience with features like passkeys indicates a broader industry trend towards enhanced security and efficiency.

Technology Analyst

Technologically, KAYAK's integration of ChatGPT for Ask KAYAK and the use of AI to train on proprietary databases marks a significant investment in AI and machine learning. This could set a precedent for other companies to follow, potentially leading to a surge in AI-driven innovations across various sectors.

The patent-pending status of KAYAK PriceCheck suggests a unique technological edge that may become a key differentiator in the travel search engine market. The use of passkeys also indicates KAYAK's commitment to staying ahead of the curve in cybersecurity, which is becoming increasingly important to consumers and could lead to wider industry adoption of similar technologies.

Considering the reduced sign-up and sign-in times reported by KAYAK, there is an anticipated improvement in user engagement and conversion rates, which could be a critical factor in KAYAK's growth and stock performance.

Financial Analyst

The financial implications of KAYAK's AI products, particularly KAYAK PriceCheck and Ask KAYAK, are multifaceted. By enhancing user experience, KAYAK is likely to see an increase in traffic and user engagement, which can translate into higher revenue through increased bookings and potential partnerships.

The investment in AI and proprietary database training could result in operational efficiencies, reducing costs over time. However, the initial expenditure on technology development and patent processes may affect short-term financials. The Provider Quality Scores could also influence KAYAK's relationships with OTAs, potentially impacting negotiation power and affiliate commission structures.

Investors should monitor KAYAK's quarterly financial reports for evidence of these innovations' impact on the bottom line, as well as any shifts in market share among travel search engines and OTAs.

Screenshot your way to savings with KAYAK PriceCheck;
Ask KAYAK (almost) anything with ChatGPT-powered responses

STAMFORD, Conn., March 5, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, KAYAK, the world's leading travel search engine, is dropping a new suite of AI products to help make travel planning decisions faster, easier and more intuitive.  These innovations are the result of extensive training of ChatGPT's AI model on KAYAK's proprietary database of billions of consumer travel queries.

At the forefront of today's release is KAYAK PriceCheck, a new patent-pending price comparison tool. Anyone with KAYAK's app can upload a screenshot of a flight itinerary from any site, and KAYAK will quickly check hundreds of sites to verify they're getting a great price.

"With today's launch of KAYAK PriceCheck, we're the only leading metasearch brand letting users compare prices using only a screenshot," said Matthias Keller, Chief Scientist & SVP of Technology at KAYAK.

Also launching today is Ask KAYAK - the company's latest AI-driven innovation designed to improve and personalize the search experience.  Ask KAYAK lets travelers use simple text entries to search and refine their results.

Wondering where to go with your family for spring break that's less than 3 hours from NYC and will cost less than $300 per person? Just Ask KAYAK and you'll get family-friendly destinations a short-distance away that fit your budget.

Travelers will also see a chat box in the results page where they can input their specific hotel, car or flight requirements. For example, they can enter "United, nonstop, morning departure, <$500" and quickly see their results. Ask KAYAK starts rolling out today and will soon be available to all users in the US, UK and Canada with more markets to follow.

"We're diving deeper into solving complex travel issues more quickly and simply with the launch of Ask KAYAK," said Keller. "The addition of free form search to apply filters makes it easy for travelers to get personalized results for their next trip."

But wait, there's more. KAYAK is also introducing the following new ways to make travel planning easier:

• Check the scores. Our Provider Quality Scores gives travelers greater confidence when booking a flight by rating providers against a set of quality factors (like price accuracy, customer service, fee transparency and customer satisfaction). Scores are for Online Travel Agencies (OTAs) only.
• Compare ticket options to get what you want. View all of your options even more easily, like what is and what is not included in your flight ticket, when deciding between a basic economy, economy, premium economy or business class ticket for your US domestic flight.
• KAYAK Trips - now with live updates. With a new simplified itinerary view, KAYAK Trips keeps all your travel plans in one place - no matter where you booked. Now, not only can you build your itinerary through automatic inbox syncing, but you can also get real-time travel updates on your home/lock screens (on iOS).
• Passwords are so 2023. Passkeys are a more secure and user-friendly way to sign in to KAYAK. In fact, since implementing passkeys and ditching passwords, KAYAK reduced the average time it takes users to sign-up and sign-in by 50%.

There's a lot of great stuff happening at KAYAK. Learn more about the features announced today HERE.

About KAYAK
KAYAK, part of Booking Holdings (NASDAQ:  BKNG), is the world's leading travel search engine. With billions of queries across our platforms, we help people find their perfect flight, stay, rental car and vacation package. We also support business travelers with our corporate travel solution.

 

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SOURCE KAYAK

What is the new patent-pending price comparison tool introduced by KAYAK?

The new patent-pending price comparison tool introduced by KAYAK is PriceCheck, which allows users to compare prices using only a screenshot of a flight itinerary from any site.

What is Ask KAYAK and how does it enhance the search experience?

Ask KAYAK is an AI-driven innovation that allows travelers to use simple text entries to search and refine their results, providing personalized results for their travel plans.

What are some of the new features introduced by KAYAK to make travel planning easier?

Some of the new features introduced by KAYAK include Provider Quality Scores for flight booking confidence, ticket option comparisons for different classes, live updates on KAYAK Trips, and secure Passkeys for sign-in.

Where will Ask KAYAK be available initially?

Ask KAYAK will start rolling out today and will soon be available to all users in the US, UK, and Canada, with more markets to follow.

How has KAYAK improved the sign-up and sign-in process?

KAYAK has implemented Passkeys as a more secure and user-friendly way to sign in, reducing the average time it takes users to sign up and sign in by 50% since ditching passwords.