Google won’t stop until it has forced artificial intelligence (AI) into everything under its umbrella. Flight Deals is the latest new AI venture from the search company, following its launch of preferred sources, a Finance overhaul, NotebookLM for kids, “ultrasound proximity detection“, and Web Guide. And that’s just this month. So far.
Don’t miss these Flight Deals
In case the name isn’t enough of a giveaway, Google hopes to convince users — in the US, Canada, and India initially — to book their next getaway using its AI. Instead of a travel agent or looking at what’s available yourself, “you can just describe when, where and how you’d like to travel — as though you’re talking to a friend — and Flight Deals will take care of the rest.”
That sounds suspiciously like visiting a travel agent, except for the part where you’re talking to a soulless husk that only bears the slightest resemblance to a functioning human. The trick here is that Google Flights’ new function will account for general statements and come up with recommendations based on that.
So you could ask for a “six-day beach trip somewhere with air conditioning” and it’ll surface a range of options that meet your criteria. It’s a great idea in theory, but the resulting outputs might turn out to be utterly useless. Even if that’s not the case, users will have to let AI make its decisions and have enough disposable income to just… go away on a whim. Which might be why the feature isn’t slated for launch in South Africa just yet.
