Holoai and partners developing AI-powered travel guides
Root/Zurich - Holoai GmbH and the tourism agencies for Zurich, Basel, Graubünden and Lucerne are keen to give visitors the chance to discover these places in a personalized manner. To this end, they are developing a travel guide powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI). Initial prototypes are set to be trialled as soon as this summer.
Zurich Tourism and Holoai GmbH from Root in the canton of Lucerne are joining forces to deliver an innovation for Swiss tourism. With the participation of Basel Tourism, Graubünden Tourism und Lucerne Tourism, they have together launched the project AI Local Guides, as Zurich Tourism writes in a press release. The aim is to develop a travel guide powered by AI that provides visitors with personalized recommendations for places to visit.
«The Local Guides make cultural knowledge, local stories and historical contexts accessible in a simple and appealing way», comments Darius Barmettler, CEO of Holoai GmbH, in the press release. «They offer a new form of digital support for tourists to connect them with their destination», he adds. The Local Guides are designed to be used like classic audio guides, although they can also be integrated into existing digital platforms such as the Zurich City Guide app.
The project partners intend to present initial prototypes and their test results this summer. Integration into the Zurich City Guide app is scheduled for the final quarter of 2025, before other tourism stakeholders are then given the opportunity to connect.
«With this platform, we are laying the foundations for making local expertise accessible to tourists on the basis of generative AI», as Pascal Schwager, Head of Digital Products & Services at Zurich Tourism, explains in the press release. «With this project, our aim is to further digitize Swiss tourism in addition to offering other destinations the opportunity to leverage this technology in the future - without having to make large investments off their own back», he concludes.
