IHG Hotels & Resorts has announced the launch of an IHG app in OpenAI’s ChatGPT and plans to add AI-powered conversational search to IHG.com and the IHG One Rewards app. The developments come as more than half of U.S. travelers now use AI to plan trips.
The ChatGPT app allows users to search, compare and explore IHG’s more than 7,000 hotels in over 100 countries. ChatGPT will recommend IHG hotels based on traveler preferences, surfacing real-time availability, pricing, interactive maps and amenities. Once a hotel is selected, users are directed to IHG’s direct booking channels to complete their reservation.
The forthcoming conversational search on IHG.com and the IHG One Rewards app will allow travelers to search for hotels using natural language rather than fixed search fields or keywords.
“Guest expectations are evolving quickly, and we’re evolving with them,” said Jolie Fleming, chief product & technology officer of IHG Hotels & Resorts. “With more than one million guests staying with us every night around the world, we’re using AI to make the travel experience more seamless from planning and booking through to their stay. Pairing AI with the warmth of human hospitality ultimately helps us deliver a more exceptional live experience—one that feels personal, responsive and connected to each guest in the moment.”
Hotel companies are going all in on AI. In early May, Wyndham Hotels also announced its own native app within ChatGPT.