Ground transportation platform provider HQ has added a suite of AI capabilities to its SummitGround platform, the company announced.
The full suite of capabilities is dubbed “Ride and Expense Navigator,” according to HQ.
One new AI-powered feature enables voice-based bookings and became available to clients in May, according to HQ managing director Jeff LaFave, joining a chat-based assistant for booking, reporting and receipt management.
The reporting and receipt management functions remain chat-based for now, LaFave said, but HQ plans to offer voice-based functionality “in the coming months.”
The voice assistant adoption is “not quick at this point,” but initial feedback has been positive, with users considering the functionality fast and simple, LaFave said. “People can be talking [to the virtual assistant] while working on another screen, but it comes back with that full confirmation 10 seconds later, so they have that physical piece [to] know it’s been done correctly.”
As is typical with AI, the system will continue to improve the more people use it, LaFave said. “We’ve seen it for new bookings, though they can also use it for cancellations and changes, but we haven’t seen much of that,” he added.
Other AI capabilities include “real-time travel intelligence,” including information on traffic, strikes and local events that could cause delays, LaFave said. HQ also is using AI for personalized risk mitigation, “delivering tailored alerts and recommendations to keep employees informed and secure,” according to the company.
The AI assistant has functionality for airport rides, and, using information on distance and standard traffic conditions, might suggest a requested pick-up would not provide enough time to make a flight, for example.
Other AI features include service and pricing predictions based on company policy, personal preferences, booking history and automated invoice review, according to the company. Price guarantees and instant payment support also are available. One example LaFave gave for the latter is if the billing for a regular ride looks more expensive than usual, AI will flag it for the client to review before approving it for payment.
Clients are given the choice to opt in for the AI functionalities, and they are provided at no additional cost, LaFave said.
“We’re trying to bring in those features and functions and the use of AI to really help that corporate travel manager better manage their program and for that booker and passenger to have a better experience,” LaFave said. “We’re trying to really bring in AI where it is truly helpful and adds value, not just to bring in a neat feature.”
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