Skift Tech Forum Preview: Kayak's Chief Scientist Confident on Fare Predictions
Skift Take
Today's data scientists know what they don't know. In other words, they have an appreciation for the complexity of what they are trying to accomplish. Separating the hype from the reality is one of the topics data executives from Kayak and HotelTonight will discuss at the Skift Tech Forum.
There's a lot going on at Kayak underneath the hood.
Matthias Keller, Kayak's chief scientist and vice president of technology, helps massage the two billion consumer queries that Booking Holdings' metasearch brand receives annually, and combines these insights with a wide variety of other data types to personalize and hone the user experience.
Whether it's fine-tuning the best flight options for a user's trip, or combining historical and real-time data to make predictions about airfare's, Kayak is leveraging the mammoth amount of data is collects to tweak its offerings and introduce products.
From initiating a dialogue with Keller, it's clear that all of this for Kayak — and for the travel industry — is a work in progress.
"As machine-learning algorithms become more sophisticated and computing power becomes more affordable, we are able to deliver bigger, more accurate models," Keller said, referring to Kayak's price forecast tool.
Keller isn't shy about making boasts when called for. He argued that Kayak has "the best fare prediction in the industry" because of the company's scale and partner dive
