The capacity of artificial intelligence to mitigate the impact of tourism and foster sustainable practices has been showcased today at the TurisTIC Forum organised by the Eurecat technology centre. Leading experts noted how AI technologies contribute to the sector’s efficiency and effectiveness while they are also the driving force which will enable the new digitalisation-powered Tourism 3.0 which ramps up the options for delivering tourism services and activities across a range of connected realities.

“Artificial intelligence-based systems can help towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and rolling out policies which enable sustainable and environmentally friendly tourism without lessening service quality,” argued Ulises Cortés, High Performance Artificial Intelligence Scientific Coordinator at the Barcelona Supercomputing Center and coordinator of the UPC’s Master’s degree in AI.

These technologies make it possible to “improve transport and logistics efficiency, cut energy costs, control water and carbon footprints, reduce waste and enhance its reuse, and promote sustainable practices such as restricting access to areas in high demand or of ecological and cultural value to prevent their impairment.”

“Hardwiring AI into the tourism industry optimises the traveller experience and helps enterprises to deliver more efficient and personalised services,” added Laia Garriga, technology transfer lead in Eurecat’s Applied Artificial Intelligence Unit.

In the specific case of generative AI, “it will allow improvements in language models and we will have a much enhanced chatbot conversational AI and virtual assistants” which will call for “greater emphasis on ethics and responsibility in their use.”

The eleventh congress on innovation and technology in tourism held at Torre Glòries hosted an institutional session featuring Narcís Ferrer i Ferrer, Director General of the Catalan Tourist Board, Abigail Garrido i Tinta, Deputy Tourism Officer at Barcelona Provincial Council, Miquel Rodríguez i Planas, Economic Development Manager at Barcelona City Council, and Francesc Santasusana i Riera, a member of Eurecat’s Board of Trustees and Executive Committee.

Tourism 3.0, a new concept for AI-powered tourism

The congress also noted that artificial intelligence is the foundation of Tourism 3.0 as part the new digital construction of Web 3.0. “The concept of tourism is evolving; it will no longer be just here and now but rather new products and experiences can be generated regardless of where the person is and the time,” said Montse Guàrdia, chair of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia’s Social Council and member of the Advisory Board at the Centre of Innovation for Data Tech and Artificial Intelligence (CIDAI). This is because Tourism 3.0 “is a new multidimensional space featuring not just one reality but instead several virtual, augmented, related and connected realities which are made possible by AI.”

“Ethics has a crucial role to play in setting a framework of consistency in the evolutionary and disruptive construction of Tourism 3.0 for all,” she commented. To make this happen “we need to work across sectors, sharing knowledge and outlooks while continuing with our technology-driven innovation.”

The long history of harnessing artificial intelligence in tourism was addressed at the TurisTIC Forum by Antonio Moreno, professor at Rovira i Virgili University and Deputy Director of the URV’s School of Engineering.

Likewise, several tourism industry undertakings including Amazon Web Services, Vueling, PayThunder, Big Blue Analytics, Delectatech, Turbosuite and the Eurecat technology centre have unveiled their projects showing how artificial intelligence can transform the tourism value chain.

“Businesses which effectively put in place these technologies can see significant improvements in their bottom line and customer satisfaction,” said Big Blue Analytics data scientist Cristina Núñez.

In museums, for example, “artificial intelligence and augmented reality can transform the sector since they change visits into experiences and this coupled with other technologies such as big data is gold,” pointed out PayThunder CEO Francisco Gómez.

“Artificial intelligence makes it possible for a painting to tell you its story in any language, the pieces on display to interact with visitors and robots to guide you through museums or pour you a beer in their restaurant,” he added. “Augmented reality allows you to visit a museum virtually from your home or onsite, travelling back in time by imitating its most representative buildings and characters.”

TurisTIC Forum is organised by Eurecat and sponsored by the Government of Catalonia, Barcelona City Council and Barcelona Provincial Council.