MakeMyTrip brings generative AI for travel bookings, ties up with Microsoft

MakeMyTrip plans to expand the platform to other Indian languages, such as Bhojpuri and various southern dialects, in the near future

MakeMyTrip, one of India’s leading online travel companies, is testing a voice-assisted booking solution to serve customers who have difficulty using mobile phones or computers, reported Livemint.

The pilot project's goal is to make travel arrangements for these users faster and easier.

A limited number of MakeMyTrip users will initially have access to the voice-assisted feature in English and Hindi. In the near future, the company intends to expand the platform to include additional Indian languages like Bhojpuri and various southern languages.

MakeMyTrip and Microsoft have collaborated to create this innovative technology, and the in-platform tech stack is powered by the Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service and Azure Cognitive Services.

The platform will soon converse with users in their native tongue to provide personalised travel recommendations based on their preferences; curate holiday packages based on variable factors such as occasion, budget, activity preferences, and time of travel; and even assist in booking these holiday packages.

The next stage of the voice-assisted booking flow will include additional transport options. The feature is embedded in the platform's landing page and can be activated with a single click.

"We are excited to introduce a feature that removes barriers such as language, literacy, inability to navigate complex app environments, physical impairments, etc," Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and Group CEO of MakeMyTrip, was quoted as saying by Livemint.

"Previously, we provided language support in Hindi and Tamil, but it was still in text format, and while we worked on vernacular languages, it didn't take off because regional language keyboards are complex. We've now eliminated other barriers with voice-assisted booking. This Generative AI integration, made possible by our partnership with Microsoft, entails simple visual cues and voice commands in native Indian languages, which will forever change the landscape of travel bookings," he added.

The new offering leverages the power of AI and Machine Learning to make travel-related solutions ubiquitous, regardless of use case or scenario. The combination of Microsoft's large language models and Indian language speech models, as well as MakeMyTrip's natural language understanding capability and travel domain content, also creates the foundation for users to interact with the platform in any Indian language.