On October 1st, Priceline introduced Penny Voice, the latest enhancement to its AI travel assistant, unveiled at OpenAI’s DevDay. This voice-activated assistant, powered by the advanced GPT-4o using OpenAI’s Realtime API, represents a significant step forward. Customers soon find booking travel can be as easy as chatting with a friend.
Starting today, users can explore the initial version of Penny Voice via Priceline’s homepage and iOS app, specifically for hotel services. The technology will be gradually deployed in the following weeks as part of the public beta program for the new Realtime API.
Features and Capabilities
Using sophisticated multimodal technology, Penny can process and respond to intricate questions in real time by drawing on past interactions and user preferences. This full integration of AI technologies, including OpenAI’s GPT-4o and Voice Engine, enhances the interactive experience, allowing for intuitive, hands-free hotel searches and tailored recommendations.
- Simple, hands-free hotel searching;
- Personalized recommendations for activities;
- Discovering ideal destinations.
“At Priceline, we’ve always pushed technological boundaries to make travel easier. With Penny Voice, we’re further redefining how people plan and book travel,” said Brett Keller, CEO of Priceline. “Our collaboration with OpenAI includes a continuous feedback loop, allowing us to rapidly innovate, enhance and now literally bring Penny to life. We’re extremely proud of our work together and the results.”
OpenAI’s Olivier Godement, Head of API Product, added, “Integrating Realtime API with Penny is a great example of how companies can use our tools to build natural conversation experiences into their applications.”
Evoking Natural Conversations
Penny Voice adapts to real-time dialogues, making travel arrangements more personalized. By harnessing cutting-edge voice recognition and machine learning, including Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG), Penny offers precise information, efficiently processing both text and audio. Priceline’s vast customer data and global inventory work in harmony to deliver an extraordinary user experience.
- Natural conversational interactions;
- Adapts to user tonality;
- Supports over 120 languages.
In developing Penny’s distinctive voice, Priceline auditioned more than a hundred voice actors, ensuring that the assistant resonates with authenticity.
Travellers can now easily search for accommodations or explore new locales through Penny on Priceline’s app and web interfaces. Future updates will enhance Penny with full Realtime API capabilities, further broadening its services beyond hotels to flights, rental cars, and vacation packages.
“Penny Voice makes planning a trip as easy as having a conversation with a friend, making the experience far more natural and intuitive,” stated Kevin Heery, Chief Product Officer at Priceline. “At Priceline, we continually explore new ways to leverage AI and novel technologies to enhance the travel experience. Today we’re excited to welcome our travelers to a world where their next adventure is just a conversation away.”
Expect future improvements to include enhanced customer service and the expansion of Penny’s role across all booking categories. To experience Penny Voice, visit Priceline or download the Priceline iOS app.
