The World Travel &Tourism Council (WTTC) has released two new reports on AI to assist the travel industry in understanding the potential applications and risks of the technology.
The reports complement the WTTC’s series on AI research, which began with reports focused on the potential of AI to revolutionise the travel and tourism industry through promoting sustainability and improving the customer experience.
Entitled Overview of AI Risks, Safety and Governance and Global Strategies, Policies and Regulations, the final reports in the series serve as a collection of information on global AI strategies and provide a guideline for how travel and tourism businesses can implement AI in a way that minimises risk.
The risks outlined by the WTTC include bias, as AI systems are based on data, and if this favours a particular idea, it could lead to the exclusion of other ideas, job replacement, disinformation, safety and security risks as well as the existential risk that AI could develop beyond human control.
Regarding job replacement, the WTTC research shows that AI will replace 300 million jobs in the next 10 years, equivalent to the entire global travel and tourism industry. While previous developments in automation replaced the jobs of blue-collar workers, AI will take over the positions of white-collar professionals.
The WTTC outlined frameworks developed by various governmental bodies and industry leaders. According to the organisation’s research, 82% of businesses believed they were applying the best practices for responsible AI, but only 24% were taking deliberate action to ensure AI systems are operated responsibly.
“The WTTC recommends travel and tourism organisations considering AI in their business should use any of the frameworks best suited to their organisation,” reads the report.
Julie Shainock, Global MD of Travel, Transport and Logistics for Microsoft, which collaborated with the WTTC in creating the new reports, said they had seen AI being embraced across the entire travel eco-system. While it is still early days for AI, the technology is already enhancing customer and employee experiences, and driving more efficiency in operations.
“We are excited to see what the future holds as AI becomes more widely adopted to automate the more mundane tasks of travel and harness the true spirit of travel, to elevate the human experience,” said Shainock.
The reports can be accessed on the WTTC Research Hub.
