Tag Archives: Google

Travalyst has scaled flight emissions information globally, with emissions data appearing in over 65 billion searches1. The search figure, released by Travalyst – the not-for-profit organisation founded by Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex – aggregates data from a number of its coalition partners2, which include Amadeus, Booking.com, Expedia Group, Google, Sabre, Skyscanner, Travelport, and Trip.com Group. Travalyst’s mission is to align the travel industry behind clear, consistent and credible sustainability information to help people make more informed choices. The Travel Impact Model (TIM), which estimates lifecycle emissions for flights at the individual passenger level, was developed by Google and has been scaled through the Travalyst coalition. Platforms using the TIM present flight emissions information at the time of booking, so travellers are able to choose a flight with an estimated lower-than-typical CO2e footprint3. On some platforms, travellers can also sort flight search results by emissions, alongside standard filter options such as cost and arrival/departure time. For example, the typical CO2e per passenger on a one-way economy flight from London (LGW) to New York (JFK) is 466 kg4. Popular travel booking platforms highlight an option that is 12% (57 kg) lower than the typical CO2e for that route. The difference in CO2e is approximately equivalent to a passenger’s flight from London (LGW) to Dublin (DUB) (typically 56 kg CO2e). The TIM takes a variety of attributes into account including flight origin and destination, aircraft type, cabin class and seat configuration, load factors and average aircraft utilisation. With such granular data comes the ability to see emissions at individual airline level, which could pave the way for airlines to compete on reducing their climate impact, as well as price and service. …

Sabre Corporation announced that Sabre and Google are developing an Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven technology platform that is an industry first in travel. The technology, known as Sabre Travel AI TM, is infused with Google’s state-of-the-art AI technology and advanced machine-learning capabilities that will help customers to deliver highly relevant and personalised content more quickly, deliver personalised content that better meets the demands of today’s traveller, and create expanded revenue and margin growth opportunities. The Company is integrating Sabre Travel AI into certain products in its existing portfolio, with plans to bring those to market in early 2021. “Sabre Travel AI is a game-changer. We are proud to be working with Google to build technologies that will seek to re-define the way travel companies do business, and turn the insights derived from analyses into repeatable, scalable operations. The development of Sabre Travel AI marks a milestone in our technology transformation and a significant step toward achieving our 2025 vision of personalised retailing,” said Sundar Narasimhan, president of Sabre Labs. “With the creation of Sabre Travel AI, we are rebuilding our platform on cloud-native, data-driven technology that can be integrated into the existing and future products that Sabre offers. We are combining Google Cloud’s infrastructure, AI and machine-learning capabilities with Sabre’s deep travel domain knowledge to create, not next, but third-generation solutions that we believe are smarter, faster and more cost-effective – a first-of-its kind in travel.”

A delegation led by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi) attended an executive summit recently held at the Google headquarters in Mountain View, California, USA. The event offered DCT Abu Dhabi and its partners, Etihad Airways, Miral, ADNEC, and Aldar, the opportunity to explore Google’s main campus as well as giving exclusive insight into the tech giant’s work culture, technology, and innovations. As part of DCT Abu Dhabi’s mission to position Abu Dhabi as a thriving tourism destination of distinction, the summit aimed to further coordinate the commercial activity of all attending organisations by reviewing with Google shared best practice and process efficiencies, a joint approach to positioning Abu Dhabi as one of the world’s top destinations. Sessions were organised around the unique working culture at Google, on digital brand building and the variety of Google travel products, as well as trends that are shaping the industry. Google also organised an exclusive presentation by Visit California, as a way of sharing experiences among tourism boards, with particular emphasis on organisational structure, objectives and marketing strategy. The second day of the Executive Summit was dedicated to discussion and interactive sessions on Abu Dhabi’s tourism ecosystem and fostering collaboration between different entities, with the help of Google’s system intelligence and technology. Among a number of agreed action points from the summit was a shared data initiative intended to significantly bolster the tourism ecosystem of the Emirate, as well as further cooperation on consistently presenting the destination brand.