Travel search engine Kayak has officially launched an innovative "AI Mode" feature, empowering users to streamline their trip planning and booking processes through an integrated AI chatbot. This new functionality, now accessible across both desktop and mobile web platforms, allows travelers to ask a wide array of travel-related questions, as well as compare and book flights, hotels, and rental cars directly within Kayak's website.

The "AI Mode" leverages Kayak's robust integration with OpenAI's ChatGPT technology, enabling it to deliver contextual and highly relevant results to user queries. This rollout follows the company's earlier venture in April with Kayak.ai, a dedicated testing ground designed for experimenting with AI capabilities. Kayak.ai similarly combined Kayak's extensive data and tools with OpenAI's technology, providing its tech team a platform to refine AI features before their broader introduction to Kayak.com. Essentially, the "AI Mode" feature brings the proven functionalities of the experimental Kayak.ai directly into the main Kayak website, making it readily available to a wider user base.

Users can engage with the AI chatbot for various purposes, from seeking travel ideas and recommendations to executing specific searches. Examples include inquiring about locations to fly to within a specific budget, identifying the best deals for a preferred destination, comparing hotel amenities, or finding nonstop flight options and suitable rental car choices. Beyond structured queries, the AI also accommodates more open-ended questions, such as "I want to party for NYE — where should I go?" to receive recommendations without predefined destinations, or learning the optimal time to fly based on historical ticket prices. Kayak itself has provided additional AI prompt suggestions on its official blog to guide users.

This feature is particularly valuable for consumers in the nascent stages of travel planning, offering assistance when they are primarily exploring ideas and possibilities. While the potential for converting AI users into paying customers through these new methods remains an area for observation, Kayak's initiative marks a significant step towards simplifying the often frustrating and tedious experience of online travel booking.

Initially, "AI Mode" is available in English within the United States, with plans for expansion to other countries and languages later in the month. Further enhancements are also in the pipeline, including rolling out the feature to more platforms and introducing support for voice-based requests in the near future. The broader travel industry, including major players like Expedia and Booking.com (owned by Kayak’s parent company, Booking Holdings), is actively exploring AI solutions. OpenAI, for instance, has announced partnerships allowing these services to operate as apps within ChatGPT. By contrast, Kayak's strategic decision to host its AI chatbot directly on its own site provides the company with more immediate and direct access to valuable consumer insights regarding the AI's usage and effectiveness.