AI in Tourism: Facial Recognition and Beyond – Part 6 of 8

This is Part 6 of a 8-blog posts series “Exploring the Intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Tourist Experiences: Insights into AI-Driven Customization and Its Impact on Tourism”.

.

3.5 AI’s New Frontier in Tourism: Facial Recognition and Its Impacts

The fusion of Artificial Intelligence (AI) with the travel and tourism sector is ushering in an era of enhanced customer experiences and heightened security. Among the myriad AI innovations, facial recognition emerges as a game-changer. Drawing insights from Gupta et al.’s (2023) study, “The future is yesterday: Use of AI-driven facial recognition to enhance value in the travel and tourism industry,” we delve into the transformative role of this technology.

1. Introduction to the Tech: While facial recognition isn’t novel, its integration into travel and tourism is groundbreaking. The technology functions by identifying facial features, cross-referencing them with stored data for purposes ranging from identification to security.
2. Personalization: AI-empowered facial recognition paves the way for tailored trip planning, efficient email and calendar integrations, and concise bill summaries. Recognizing returning customers, it can personalize services, such as adjusting room temperatures or suggesting meals based on past preferences.
3. Security Enhancements: Widely adopted across industries, facial recognition in travel and tourism ensures heightened security. It’s instrumental at border checkpoints, airports, and hotels, verifying identities and streamlining access.
4. Frictionless Payments: The tech facilitates swift, seamless payments, enabling experiences like automatic restaurant billing or staff-free check-outs.
5. Eco-friendly Approach: By eliminating the need for paper-based boarding passes, facial recognition contributes to environmental sustainability.

However, the technology’s rise isn’t without challenges. Ethical and privacy concerns loom large, emphasizing the need for meticulous data handling to safeguard individual privacy and consent. Additionally, system accuracy remains a concern, with potential misidentifications posing risks.

Gupta et al.’s (2023) study enriches the tourism discourse, spotlighting AI-driven facial recognition’s role in amplifying value. Through in-depth interviews, the study identifies core themes, emphasizing the tech’s potential in tailoring services and enhancing security. This case underscores facial recognition’s transformative capacity in the industry, from personalization to security. Yet, it’s imperative to navigate ethical and privacy challenges responsibly.

.

Concluding, the five case studies in this segment illuminate AI’s profound impact on crafting personalized, immersive, and streamlined tourist experiences. From machine learning’s prowess in hotel recommendations to the synergy of deep learning and IoT, and the capabilities of models like ChatGPT, AI is redefining the tourism landscape. As showcased, while AI offers unparalleled advantages, it’s crucial to address ethical concerns and potential limitations. Continued research, emphasizing human-AI collaboration and specialized techniques for tourism, will be pivotal. With responsible evolution, AI stands ready to sculpt the future of tourist experiences.

.

Previous posts:

AI in Tourism: Revolutionizing Personalized Experiences and Operational Efficiency – Part 1 of 8:
https://www.andrearossi.it/en/ai-tourism-personalized-experiences-operational-efficiency/

.

AI-Powered Personalization: Elevating Tourist Experiences – Part 2 of 8:
https://www.andrearossi.it/en/ai-powered-personalization-elevating-tourist-experiences/

.

AI’s Role in Crafting Personalized Tourist Experiences: A Literature Review – Part 3 of 8:
https://www.andrearossi.it/en/ai-tourist-experiences-literature-review/

.

Revolutionizing Tourism with AI: Case Studies on Hotel Recommendations and Smart City Experiences – Part 4 of 8
https://www.andrearossi.it/en/tourism-ai-case-studies-hotel-smart-city-experiences/
.
AI in Tourism: Case Studies on ChatGPT and Amazon Web Services – Part 5 of 8
https://www.andrearossi.it/en/ai-in-tourism-case-studies-on-chatgpt-and-amazon-web-services/

.

#TourismTech #FacialRecognition #TravelInnovation #AIEthics #PersonalizedTravel #AISecurity #TravelTrends #FutureOfTourism #AIDrivenTourism #CaseStudies

.

Imagine: A man chats with artificial intelligence from his smartphone By AndersonPiza

.

References

• AIFinesse. (2023). AI in Tourism: 2023 and Beyond. Retrieved from https://www.aifinesse.com/ai-in-tourism-2023-and-beyond/
• Amadeus. (2023). Artificial Intelligence | Amadeus. https://amadeus.com/en/solutions/airlines/artificial-intelligence
• Booking.com. (2018). Booking.com reveals the top travel predictions for 2019. Retrieved from https://globalnews.booking.com/bookingcom-reveals-the-top-travel-predictions-for-2019/
• Buhalis, D. (2020). Technology in tourism-from information communication technologies to eTourism and smart tourism towards ambient intelligence tourism: a perspective article. Tourism Review.
• Buhalis, D., & Leung, R. (2020). Smart hospitality—Interconnectivity and interoperability towards an ecosystem. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 85, 102433.
• Buhalis, D., & Moldavska, A. (2022). Smart tourism and competitive advantage for stakeholders. Tourism Review.
• Chan, N. L., & Guillet, B. D. (2018). Investigation of social media marketing: how does the hotel industry in Hong Kong perform in marketing on social media websites? Journal of Travel & Tourism Marketing, 31(8), 961-972.
• Chen, Y., Xu, Z., & Gretzel, U. (2020). The impact of artificial intelligence-powered personalization on tourist satisfaction: A large-scale field experiment. Tourism Management, 80, 104170.
• Chunduri, P. K. (2020). Effects of Use of Personalised Artificial Intelligence and Robot Application on Customer Service in the Tourism Industry. International Journal of Advanced Science and Technology, 29(12), 1594-1600.
• Dataconomy. (2023). Is AI Technology The Future Of Travel? Retrieved from https://dataconomy.com/2023/08/03/is-ai-technology-the-future-of-travel/
• Dawes, J. (2023). Amazon Web Services Execs on AI ‘Hyper-Personalization’ in Travel. Skift. Retrieved from https://skift.com/2023/06/27/amazon-web-services-execs-on-ai-hyper-personalization-in-travel/
• Dunne, D. (2022). The Future Of Personalization In The Travel Industry. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/danadunne/2022/01/27/the-future-of-personalisation-in-the-travel-industry/
• Dwivedi, Y. K., Hughes, D. L., Coombs, C., Constantiou, I., Duan, Y., Edwards, J. S., … & Upadhyay, N. (2023). Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on information management research and practice: Transforming education, work and life. International Journal of Information Management, 55, 102211.
• Forbes Advisor. (2023). 25 Astonishing AI Statistics for 2023. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/ai-statistics/
• GlobeNewswire. (2023). Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Travel and Tourism Thematic Intelligence Report 2023. Retrieved from https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2023/08/03/2718144/0/en/Artificial-Intelligence-AI-in-Travel-and-Tourism-Thematic-Intelligence-Report-2023.html
• Goodfellow, I., Bengio, Y., & Courville, A. (2016). Deep Learning. MIT Press.
• Gretzel, U., Sigala, M., Xiang, Z., & Koo, C. (2018). Smart tourism: Foundations and developments. Cham: Springer International Publishing.
• Gupta, S., Modgil, S., Lee, CK. et al. The future is yesterday: Use of AI-driven facial recognition to enhance value in the travel and tourism industry. Inf Syst Front 25, 1179–1195 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10796-022-10271-8
• Gursoy, D., Chi, C. G. Q., Lu, L., & Nunkoo, R. (2019). Antecedents and outcomes of travelers’ information-seeking behavior in the context of AI. Journal of Travel Research, 0047287519868314.
• Inanc-Demir, L., & Kozak, M. (2019). The role of artificial intelligence in tourism. In Tourism in the City (pp. 221-232). Springer.
• Koegler, S. (2023). AI Technology in Tourism: Personalized Experiences. AI & Machine Learning Tech Brief. Retrieved from https://www.aimltechbrief.com/index.php/bigdata/item/7561-ai-technology-in-tourism-personalized-experiences
• Kong, H., Wang, L., & Fu, X. (2022). Artificial intelligence in tourism: state of the art and future research directions. Journal of Travel Research, 0047287520962792.
• Leung, R. (2020). Developing a conceptual model for smart tourism research: a sustainability perspective. Sustainability, 12(9), 3832.
• Li, X., Law, R., Vu, H. Q., Rong, J., & Zhao, X. (2018). Identifying emerging hotel preferences using Emerging Pattern Mining technique. Tourism Management, 67, 370-383.
• Li, X., Wang, D., Andergassen, R., Huang, Y., & Zeng, B. (2020). Personalized travel recommendation: integrating the strengths of content-based and collaborative filtering. Information Technology & Tourism, 22, 555–573.
• Li, X., Wang, D., Liang, X., Huang, D. (2020). China’s smart tourism destination initiative: A taste of the service-dominant logic. Journal of Travel Research, 0047287520913410.
• Lv, Z., Song, H., Basiri, A., Jackson, M., & Kitchin, R. (2022). Recommender systems in tourism: state of the art and future directions. Tourism Review.
• McCartney, G., & McCartney, A. (2020). The impact of artificial intelligence on the future of tourism. International Journal of Tourism Cities.
• McKinsey & Company. (2018). An AI nation: Harnessing the opportunity of artificial intelligence in Denmark. Retrieved from https://www.mckinsey.com/~/media/McKinsey/Featured%20Insights/Europe/Harnessing%20the%20opportunity%20of%20artificial%20intelligence%20in%20Denmark/An-AI-nation-Harnessing-the-opportunity-of-AI-in-Denmark.pdf
• Mich, L., Garigliano, R. ChatGPT for e-Tourism: a technological perspective. Inf Technol Tourism 25, 1–12 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40558-023-00248-x
• Mileva, G. (2023). Top 10 AI Trends That Will Transform Businesses in 2023. Influencer Marketing Hub. Retrieved from https://influencermarketinghub.com/ai-trends/
• O’Flaherty, K. (2023). 3 tech trends that will dominate the travel industry in 2023. The Next Web. Retrieved from https://thenextweb.com/news/3-tech-trends-travel-industry-2023
• Pang, B., Chen, Y., & Zhang, X. (2020). The impact of AI-powered personalization on tourist experiences: A review of literature. Tourism Management, 79, 104064.
• Philip L. Pearce, Mao-Ying Wu, Manuela De Carlo, Andrea Rossi “Contemporary experiences of Chinese tourists in Italy: An on-site analysis in Milan” nella rivista internazionale “Tourism Management Perspectives” 7 (2013) 34–37, Ed. Elsevier ltd (retrieved from https://www.academia.edu/4027130/Contemporary_experiences_of_Chinese_tourists_in_Italy)
• Petar. (2023). The Future of AI in Tourism: Analyzing the Potential for Personalization and Experience Enhancement. Medium. Retrieved from https://medium.com/@peco4312/the-future-of-ai-in-tourism-analyzing-the-potential-for-personalization-and-experience-enhancement-b676e7ac58a8?source=rss——-1
• PR Newswire. (2023). Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Travel and Tourism Intelligence Report 2023: AI-Driven Technologies Disrupting Travel, Enhancing Efficiency and Personalization. Retrieved from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-artificial-intelligence-ai-in-travel-and-tourism-intelligence-report-2023-ai-driven-technologies-disrupting-travel-enhancing-efficiency-and-personalization-301891840.html
• Ramzan, B., Bajwa, I.S., Jamil, N., & Mirza, F. (2019). An Intelligent Data Analysis for Hotel Recommendation Systems using Machine Learning. ArXiv, abs/1910.06669.
• Research and Markets (2023). Global Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Travel and Tourism Intelligence Report 2023: AI-Driven Technologies Disrupting Travel, Enhancing Efficiency and Personalization. Retrieved from https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/global-artificial-intelligence-ai-in-travel-and-tourism-intelligence-report-2023-ai-driven-technologies-disrupting-travel-enhancing-efficiency-and-personalization-301891840.html
• Revfine. (2023). 13 Key Technology Trends Emerging in the Travel & Tourism Industry. Retrieved from https://www.revfine.com/technology-trends-travel-industry/
• Roh, S., Park, D., & Kim, J. (2020). The role of AI-powered personalization in tourism: A case study of a major South Korean travel agency. Journal of Travel Research, 59(2), 270-284.
• Rossi Andrea (2020) “La comunicazione del turismo ai tempi del coronavirus” inserito nel fascicolo monografico del “Semestrale di studi e ricerche di Geografia”, dedicato all’impatto socio-territoriale della pandemia, “Epidemia, spazio e società. Idee e analisi per il dibattito e le politiche pubbliche” a cura di Angelo Turco, ISSN 1125-5218, pp. 57-71, XXXII, Fascicolo 2, luglio-dicembre 2020 (retrieved from https://www.semestrale-geografia.uniroma1.it/index.php/semestrale-geografia/article/view/17032/16354)
• Rossi Andrea (2022), “Comunicazione Digitale per il Turismo”, Self-Publishing, Vercelli, 2022 – ISBN 9791221004175
• Rossi Andrea (2023). “Il Buono, il Brutto e il Cattivo: Il “Triello” Del Metaverso”. Documenti geografici, 0(2), 673-678. doi:http://dx.doi.org/10.19246/DOCUGEO2281-7549/202302_47 (retrieved from https://www.documentigeografici.it/index.php/docugeo/article/view/478)
• Rossi Andrea, Goetz Maurizio (2011) “Creare offerte turistiche vincenti con Tourist Experience Design”, ed. Hoepli, Milano, 2011
• Russell, S., & Norvig, P. (2020). Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach. Pearson.
• Saha, T. (2019). AI is Reimagining Travel Personalisation. Towards Data Science. Retrieved from https://towardsdatascience.com/ai-is-reimagining-travel-personalisation-c72685faa378
• Samara, E., Tsimitakis, E., & Vasilakis, C. (2020). Artificial intelligence (AI) applied in Tourism: A Bibliometric review. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Tourism Research (pp. 1-10).
• Stylos, N., Vassiliadis, C. A., Bellou, V., & Andronikidis, A. (2021). Destination images, holistic images and personal normative beliefs: Predictors of intention to revisit a destination. Tourism Management, 31(5), 525-545.
• TheNextWeb. (2023). 3 tech trends that will revolutionize the travel industry in 2023. Retrieved from https://thenextweb.com/news/3-tech-trends-travel-industry-2023
• Wang, Y., & Li, S. (2020). The impact of AI-powered personalization on tourist satisfaction: A case study of a Chinese travel website. International Journal of Tourism Research, 22(5), 721-732.
• Xiang, Z., & Gretzel, U. (2019). Artificial intelligence in tourism: A review of recent research. Tourism Management, 70, 304-326.
• Xiang, Z., Du, Q., Ma, Y., & Fan, W. (2017). A comparative analysis of major online review platforms: Implications for social media analytics in hospitality and tourism. Tourism Management, 58, 51-65.
• Xiang, Z., Du, Q., Ma, Y., & Fan, W. (2020). A comparative analysis of major online review platforms: Implications for social media analytics in hospitality and tourism. Tourism Management, 77, 104041.
• Xiang, Z., Du, Q., Ma, Y., & Fan, W. (2022). Artificial intelligence in tourism and hospitality: Bibliometric analysis and research agenda. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 13(1), 1-20.
• Yue, X., Li, X., & Li, Y. (2021). The future of tourism experience: A review of AI technology. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Technology, 12(2), 244-259.