Priceline Releases New AI Platform and 'Penny' the Chatbot

Priceline is gearing up for a busy summer of travel with the introduction of its new AI platform, Trip Intelligence. The announcement comes a day after sister company Booking.com entered the AI game. 

The online travel agency is embracing AI with a suite of 40 new booking and upgrade tools developed using Google Cloud's Generative AI App Builder. At the heart of it is "Penny," an AI chatbot that runs across Priceline's entire hotel network and can be used as a local guide, help desk contact, and 24/7 concierge. Priceline says Penny can address highly specific questions or complete bookings within the chatbot interface, which is made possible through integration with OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Priceline’s own coding system.

During the initial launch, Penny is only available for hotel bookings and can be accessed within the 'Guest & Payment Details' section of the booking path. The expansion to other services is expected in the coming months. However, the additional AI tools are site-wide and cover every service.

While this is a huge development, Priceline and other online travel players have been using AI in the online booking system process for years. The use of generative AI, however, is new as it employs large language models.

Some of Priceline's Trip Intelligence features that stand out include: 

• "Just for You" Recommendations – Browse a list of curated hotel recommendations tailored to your interests.
• Flight Rebook – Rebook with no need to go to the airline.
• Sustainable Choices – The Travel Sustainable program allows users to apply new filters and badging to help make more informed choices.
• Family Friendly reviews and filters – See detailed reviews for families and easily identify services that meet specific needs.
• Enhanced Payment Security for credit cards and fraud protection.

"With over two decades of industry-leading technology innovation and price negotiation, Priceline remains the trusted travel partner for millions of travelers around the world when booking their most complicated trips," said Priceline CEO Brett Keller.