Trying to find a hotel near a cruise port typically requires the traveler to toggle between mapping, a search, and hotel websites. Priceline and Google plan to make it easier through a partnership announced Tuesday.  

Priceline’s goal is to build a travel assistant chatbot powered by generative artificial intelligence (GAI) that can help consumers easily get through the travel-planning and booking process.

Marty Brodbeck, CTO at Priceline, believes it's not just about having the latest technology, but also about targeting innovation to the correct challenges and opportunities.

"Priceline is charting a course to transform the novelty of generative AI into lasting value for our customers and our business,” he said.

The travel site, part of Booking Holding, will build out the experience using Google Cloud's GAI in consumer-facing and internal application across parts of its business.

While customers will soon have the ability to interact with a Google GAI chatbot to receive more personalized results when searching for hotels worldwide, employees will benefit from increased and easier access to internal information. Priceline plans to use the GAI internally to automate some time-intensive coding and content generation tasks.

Priceline's initial Google Cloud GAI deployments will begin rolling out this summer and include a travel-assisted chatbot to provide customers with a conversational experience when answering questions about trip planning, and the ability to book a trip directly in the chat experience.

Priceline also will provide a personalized hotel booking experience backed by AI, as well as a list of preferred hotels by proximity to local attractions, restaurants and activities.

The features will become available through its web and mobile experiences as part of Priceline’s "Connected Trip" strategy. Powered by Google Cloud's Vertex AI, and displayed in a map view on the hotel's details page, an upgraded hotel booking experience will let customers access current neighborhood information personalized for them.

With GAI-powered descriptions of places of interest, Priceline customers can learn about nearby attractions, local restaurants, seasonal events and conveniences, like gas stations and grocery stores. The travel planner for a family of four can have an easier time finding and booking accommodations that meet a budget and needs.

Priceline marketing teams will have access to technology that automatically generates marketing copy and images for customers, and enhanced automation and internal database mining tools expanded through internal information search capabilities and software production.

Priceline is not the only travel site with plans to use GAI. In April, Expedia made available on the iOS app an OpenAI ChatGPT bot in beta that it hopes will provide vacationers specific information based on the query.

The interface aims to let users plan their vacation by entering in the chatbot specific preferences, time of stay, and budget. The system offers hotel or activity suggestions.

Expedia Group CEO Peter Kern in the release explains that Expedia already uses machine learning to compare hotels and price tracking for flights. The company had already partnered with OpenAI for a plugin using Expedia data like hotel and flight prices. Now it is testing GAI.

Cabinet Health, which has sold generic over-the-counter medications in refillable bottles online since 2018, has tapped 700 CVS stores in 35 states as its first brick-and-mortar locations.

Shoppers at those stores can purchase 14 Cabinet Health OTC medications in four generic categories: allergy relief, pain relief, digestive relief, and cold/flu. They are packaged in shatterproof frosted glass bottles, with refills on sale in compostable pouches made from wood pulp.

“Cabinet is the first and only sustainability packaged option for medicine in the OTC aisle today," says Russell Gong, president and co-founder of Cabinet Health.

"Having our products available in store is a critical path forward to further Cabinet’s mission of increasing accessibility to products with sustainable packaging, safer ingredients and superior performance,” Russell Gong, Cabinet Health president and co-founder, tells Marketing Daily.

He says that Cabinet plans to expand into more retail stores and to enter the prescription drug space with D2C offerings in the “near future.”

Gong says the company is supporting its CVS launch with in-store aisle endcaps that not only explain Cabinet’s mission and product proposition, but also educate consumers on the environmental impact of refillable bottles.

“Our goal is to build trust with shoppers that these are the same fast-acting, high-quality active ingredients that they’ve relied on for years, just without the plastic waste,” Gong says.

Cabinet’s retail bottles contain two to four times the pill counts of what it’s been selling D2C, and are said to save consumers up to 20% in costs compared with buying pills in plastic bottles.

“We're not only scaling awareness -- we're scaling impact by helping people continue to draw connections between everyday products and the health of our planet,” Gong says, “delivering an accessibly priced, sustainable alternative.”

Cabinet Health will also get its message out via a Sustainable Medicinemobile (a solar-powered Happier Camper), which will make stops in 10 CVS markets as it travels from Los Angeles to New York starting on June 20.

In each market on this “Sustainable Swap Tour,” the Medicine Mobile will collect plastic medicine bottles -- an expected 10,000 of them -- that will be transformed into a sculpture by artist/activist Kellie Gillespie.

In a collaboration with TikTok, Gillespie previously collected 5,000 old prescription bottles over a two-year period, turning them into a sculpture that she said would help fight two stigmas: mental health and taking prescription medication.

Consumers who bring in their plastic pill bottles may receive free Cabinet glass bottles or a prize from other participating sustainable brands like Lomi (which makes home composters).

The Federal Trade Commission on Monday filed an amended complaint against mobile data broker Kochava, which allegedly sold sensitive geolocation data.

The new complaint was filed under seal, and is at least temporarily unavailable to the public.

“The FTC anticipates that defendant Kochava Inc. may take the position that some of the materials referenced, excerpted, or cited in the amended complaint constitute trade secrets and are entitled to confidential treatment,” the agency said in a motion filed with U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill in Idaho.

The agency said it doesn't believe the new complaint reveals trade secrets, but “out of an abundance of caution” is asking to keep the document under seal until Winmill can decide whether it should remain confidential.

The amended complaint comes four weeks after Winmill dismissed the FTC's claim that Kochava engaged in an unfair business practice by allegedly selling consumers' precise location data.

Winmill ruled that the allegations in the FTC's original complaint, even if proven true, wouldn't show that Kochava created a “significant risk” of harm to consumers.

The judge said at the time that the FTC could beef up its allegations and bring its claim again.

The battle between the FTC and Kochava dates to August, when the FTC alleged that Kochava sold information about people's precise locations -- including data that could reveal visits to sensitive locales.

The agency alleged that Kochava's data -- which is obtained from other companies -- can be used to identify "consumers who have visited an abortion clinic and, as a result, may have had or contemplated having an abortion," as well as "medical professionals who perform, or assist in the performance, of abortion services.”

Winmill said in his dismissal order that the “purported privacy violation is not severe enough to constitute 'substantial injury,'” adding that information gleaned from geolocation data would be based on unreliable inferences.

“Geolocation data showing that a device visited an oncology clinic twice in one week could reveal that the device user suffers from cancer,” he wrote. “Or it may instead reveal that the person has a friend or family member who suffers from cancer.”

Winmill also said information that can be inferred from location data “is generally accessible through other, lawful means.”

“A third party may, for example, observe a person’s movements on public streets and sidewalks as they go to and from home or a medical facility,” he wrote. “A third party may also discover a person’s home address by reviewing publicly accessible property records.”

B2B platform Integrate has introduced an app that it says enables B2B marketers to capture data at third-party events and other points of connection. 

The new tool, Mobile Connect, is included free with Integrate’s Demand Accelerate platform. 

"One of the biggest hurdles B2B marketers face is the ability to connect their leads and related data from multiple channels, and that includes receiving consent and getting quality leads at live events," says Aaron Mahimainathan, chief product officer at Integrate.

Mobile Connect provides opted-in leads at third-party events regardless of API connectivity, capturing images of trade show badges, business cards, or additional buyer information for transcription, the company says. 

In addition, it features a dynamic form experience, including opt-in and custom questions.

The company points to its recent study, The State of B2B Marketing Budgets 2023, which shows that nearly 50% of B2B marketers say their biggest challenge using data to inform decisions and measure performance.

"Sales conversations can happen anywhere and at any time, and making sure marketing and sales can stay aligned with clear visibility into pipeline is critical in today’s fast-paced B2B world," says Colby Cavanaugh, senior vice president, marketing at Integrate.

Mobile keyboard provider Tappa has integrated with OpenAI's ChatGPT technology to enable smarter writing functions from its device.

One of the key benefits to this custom productivity app is an on-keyboard search function that marketers can monetize through the dedicated mobile keyboard.

Tappa’s Software Developer Kit (SDK), when offered with a mobile app, allows marketers to create a branded digital mobile keyboard to download and offer to customers.

The goal is to provide an enhanced experience not only through search, but through functions of autocorrect, spelling and grammar.

The integration of OpenAI’s GPT technology into the keyboard supports the ability to craft messages, provide translation, and offer direct and conversational answers to queries, making the time spent on the mobile phone more productive.

Consumers are spending more time on mobile devises, browsing, buying, and looking for locations of stores to shop online and in person.

U.S. adults have decreased use of PCs and tablets by more than 10% since 2019, while increasing their use of mobile phones, according to Insider Intelligence. The analyst firm also shows that to date in 2023, users spend one hour per day more on mobile phones vs. PCs and tablets.

Beyond social media, shopping and messaging, consumers spend more time accessing enterprise applications and other work-related technologies from their mobile phones. 

The mobile keyboard also enables the integration partner to add brand and store assets into the keyboard, similar to search features.

For example, if a game developer were to integrate Tappa’s mobile keyboard, users who download the Tappa keyboard would be able to access their game store and leaderboard as well as receive game-playing insights directly from the keyboard. 

The integration with OpenAI is the first of several that Tappa expects to announce in 2023. With research from GoodFirms finding that productivity apps are the most common category of apps used by 97% of users, the new functionality being rolled out by Tappa in 2023 will make the company’s mobile phone keyboards more indispensable to consumers who are already opening them on average 80 times per day. 

Apple today announced a few updates to search-related features during the company's Worldwide Developers Conference in Cupertino, California. The most revolutionary -- the Vision Pro mixed-reality headset -- introduces the world to spatial computing.

“Just as the Mac introduced us to personal computing, and iPhone introduced us to mobile computing, Apple Vision Pro introduces us to spatial computing," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement.

The headset incorporates augmented and virtual reality. It requires wearers to use their eyes, hands and voice to control the system.

The Vision Pro includes a three-dimensional interface where apps appear to pop up in the room the user occupies. A knob called the digital crown, also found on the Apple Watch, controls how immersed users want to feel while wearing the headset.

The device uses advanced eye tracking to let wearers use their eyes to highlight an app or other field. Tap a finger to select a field or flick the wrist to scroll. Voice for the search bar lets users speak to enter a query to search for information.

With the headset, users have browsing tabs arranged around them, stretch screens for a movie-theater experience, and can join video calls with spatial audio that can mimic an in-person interaction. The device also supports Apple's Magic Keyboard and Trackpad.

Messages also got an update related to the search field that allows users to add terms of the top queries. The function allows users to search individual text message threads for important parts of conversations. And there’s an arrow that takes the user to the last message read.

Most people probably delete messages after a few days, but for those who do not, the search features will come in handy.

For example, when looking for a description of a restaurant that someone sent months ago., the user can enter "restaurant" into the text search and it will bring up every time the word "restaurant" appeared in the text during that time period. 

Microsoft quietly announced the end of support for Cortana in Windows 10 and Windows 11 in late 2023, pushing users toward the new Bing powered by artificial intelligence (AI), Microsoft 365 Copilot, Windows Copilot and other products.

“We are making some changes to Windows that will impact users of the Cortana app,” Microsoft explains in a support document online. “Starting in late 2023, we will no longer support Cortana in Windows as a standalone app.”

In 2019, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella in 2019 confirmed that Cortana would never be competitive with Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa, and called the technology a backend service, according to one report.

Then, in July 2020, Microsoft announced the end of support for the Cortana app on Android and iPhone, following through on the promise in March 2021. The following June, the company said it would not include support for Cortana in Windows 11.

Productivity features in Windows and Edge are still available with the increase in AI capabilities in tasks, calendar, and email. The change only impacts Cortana in Windows. Cortana will continue to be available in Outlook mobile, Teams mobile, Microsoft Teams display, and Microsoft Teams rooms.

Rather than click on the Cortana icon to launch the app, users rely on their voice through different tools. The transition puts voice access and AI in Windows 11 in the foreground.

This new feature in Windows 11 lets users write text using their voice. Voice commands will open and switch between apps, browse the web, and read and write emails. Voice access works offline and uses advanced speech recognition to understand your speech and help you get things done.

The AI-powered Bing lets users ask complex questions and get concise answers from reliable sources across the web. Type or speak questions in Bing Chat to gain insight from multiple sources. 

Microsoft 365 Copilot feature uses AI and the user’s data from calendar, emails, chats, documents, and meetings to help create, edit, share content, and more.

Windows Copilot, available in preview for Windows 11 in June, provides centralized AI assistance. Together with Bing Chat and first- and third-party plugins, users can collaborate on complex projects.

Olive oil, already used by less than half of U.S. cooks, is losing ground. Pompeian is out to win them over, using social media and digital out-of-home to shake women aged 25 to 40 out of their mealtime misperceptions. Colleen Nash, vice president of marketing for Pompeian, dishes on the new “Can your fat say that?” campaign with Marketing Daily.

Marketing Daily: Your company is grappling with a problem, which is that younger cooks, 35 and under, are turning to less expensive fats, right?

Colleen Nash: Yes. Olive oil is relatively small in terms of U.S. household penetration, especially when you look at the rest of the world. It’s used by fewer than 50% of home cooks here. And our transaction data shows people are leaving the category for less expensive and less healthy oils. With this campaign, which is from Hunter, we want to show that our olive oil is more beneficial and sustainable, emphasizing that it’s farmer-owned. We wanted something educational and disruptive.

Marketing Daily: What oils do people use instead?

Nash: Canola, seed oils, vegetable, soybean and butter. None of those offer the benefits of olive oil. The point of this campaign is to let people know how healthy it is – it’s good for your gut, brain and skin.

Marketing Daily: What’s the resistance?

Nash: Olive oil is intimidating, almost like the wine category. You walk into the grocery store, and there’s this sea of green. Do I want this one, because it’s from Italy? This one, because it’s extra virgin? As the leading brand of olive oil in the U.S., we feel like our job is to help people overcome that barrier and show them how to use it.

Marketing Daily: How much do people care where their olive oil comes from?

Nash: Country of origin is important, but not necessarily a purchase driver. Pompeian is globally sourced, so we get the freshest oil year-round. Some are from the Mediterranean, and we also have farms in the Southern Hemisphere in countries like Argentina, Chile and Peru. Our best-seller is smooth, with a more delicate taste. Our second best-seller is robust, with a much stronger taste profile.

Marketing Daily: Who is your target audience?

Nash: Home cooks, aged 25 to 40. The kind of women who are excited about food and who are looking for products that are authentic. So we’re using a lot of paid social, including TikTok, a first for us and our first use of digital out-of-home.

Marketing Daily: Social media makes sense for that audience, but I’m intrigued by the digital out-of-home ads running just in Chicago and Boston. Why?

Nash: We’re running out-of-home billboards, transit and rideshare tops near retailers that sell our product. That enables us to use a mobile ID and retarget those people with our paid social media. So we can retarget you with a health message later and then a sustainability message, reminding you that we are farmer-owned.

Marketing Daily: Why these two cities?

Nash: Boston is a city that uses a lot of olive oil, although not a lot of Pompeian. There are a lot of people there who know how to cook with it. So this is an opportunity for us to connect with olive oil users and purchasers and be able to explain to them why they should be buying Pompeian versus other brands. And in Chicago, people use far less. Olive oil consumption is relatively high on both coasts and low in the Midwest. So this is an opportunity market for us.

Marketing Daily: What are you hoping to accomplish with this campaign besides increasing sales?

Nash: We’re monitoring brand lift and changes in awareness. We’re studying recall and purchase intent.