{"id":11523,"date":"2024-05-20T11:03:27","date_gmt":"2024-05-20T03:03:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/?p=11523"},"modified":"2024-05-20T11:06:19","modified_gmt":"2024-05-20T03:06:19","slug":"utm-co-hosts-forum-on-the-use-of-artificial-technology-in-tourism","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/utm-co-hosts-forum-on-the-use-of-artificial-technology-in-tourism\/","title":{"rendered":"<strong>UTM co-hosts forum on the use of artificial technology in tourism<\/strong>"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id='gallery-1' class='gallery galleryid-11523 gallery-columns-1 gallery-size-herald-lay-a-full'><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"herald-popup\" href='https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"990\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1.jpg\" class=\"attachment-herald-lay-a-full size-herald-lay-a-full\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-11525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-1-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-11525'>\n\t\t\t\tFrom left to right: Mr. Sun Hui, Secretary General of Tencent Culture and Tourism Research Institute; Dr. Dai Bin, President of the China Tourism Academy; Dr. Fanny Vong Chuk Kwan, UTM Rector; Mr. Ricky Hoi Io Meng, Deputy Director of Macao Government Tourism Office; Mr. Leo Chong Chi Kuan, Chairman of Senge Data Technology Macao Ltd.; and Mr. Ma Chenglong, Specialist of the Technical Research Team at Pachira Information Technology Co., Ltd.\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"herald-popup\" href='https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"990\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2.jpg\" class=\"attachment-herald-lay-a-full size-herald-lay-a-full\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-11526\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-2-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-11526'>\n\t\t\t\tFrom left to right: Dr. Sherry Tan Xiuchang, Assistant Professor at UTM; Mr. Sun Hui, Secretary General of Tencent Culture and Tourism Research Institute; Dr. Dai Bin, President of the China Tourism Academy; Dr. Fanny Vong Chuk Kwan, UTM Rector; Mr. Ricky Hoi Io Meng, Deputy Director of Macao Government Tourism Office; Mr. Leo Chong Chi Kuan, Chairman of Senge Data Technology Macao Ltd.; and Mr. Ma Chenglong, Specialist of the Technical Research Team at Pachira Information Technology Co., Ltd.\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"herald-popup\" href='https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"990\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3.jpg\" class=\"attachment-herald-lay-a-full size-herald-lay-a-full\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-11527\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-3-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-11527'>\n\t\t\t\tThe \u201cHigh-level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development 2024\u201d was part of the 2024 Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"herald-popup\" href='https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"990\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4.jpg\" class=\"attachment-herald-lay-a-full size-herald-lay-a-full\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-11528\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-4-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-11528'>\n\t\t\t\tMr. Ma Chenglong, Specialist of the Technical Research Team at Pachira Information Technology Co., Ltd\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure><figure class='gallery-item'>\n\t\t\t<div class='gallery-icon landscape'>\n\t\t\t\t<a class=\"herald-popup\" href='https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5.jpg'><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"990\" height=\"660\" src=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5.jpg\" class=\"attachment-herald-lay-a-full size-herald-lay-a-full\" alt=\"\" aria-describedby=\"gallery-1-11529\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5.jpg 990w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-414x276.jpg 414w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-470x313.jpg 470w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-130x86.jpg 130w, https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/05\/DaF-5-187x124.jpg 187w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 990px) 100vw, 990px\" \/><\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<figcaption class='wp-caption-text gallery-caption' id='gallery-1-11529'>\n\t\t\t\tPannel dicussion\n\t\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\n\n<span class='pum-trigger  popmake-11531  text-center font-blue' data-do-default=''>\u4e2d\u6587\u6458\u8981 \/ Summary in Chinese<\/span>\n\n\n\n<h5 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em><em>The \u201cHigh-level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development 2024\u201d, part of the 2024 Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo, provided valuable insights into the transformative potential of artificial intelligence in enhancing travel experiences. However, the panel discussion also underscored the importance of responsible development in light of privacy challenges<\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/em><\/h5>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The role of artificial intelligence (AI) in the development of tourism was discussed at an event co-organised by UTM last month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The \u201cHigh-level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development 2024\u201d, themed \u201cArtificial Intelligence and Creativity in Culture and Tourism\u201d, attracted more than 100 participants, including people connecting via video conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The forum was co-organised by UTM, making use of its role as the coordinating unit for the Alliance for Developing Macao into the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Tourism Education and Training Base, and UTM\u2019s function as the relying unit of the Tourism Education and Training Base for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The other co-organising unit was the China Tourism Academy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The event was part of this year\u2019s Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo, also known as MITE. The expo was held at The Venetian Macao integrated resort from 26 to 28 April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Forum attendees included government representatives, executives from businesses in the fields of tourism and technology, plus representatives of trade associations, scholars, and higher education students.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In a speech at the event, UTM Rector Dr. Fanny Vong Chuk Kwan said the University would continue to contribute to the integration of technology and cultural tourism through academic research and talent development, bringing new advancement opportunities to the Greater Bay Area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Invited speakers for the forum were: Dr. Dai Bin, President of the China Tourism Academy; Mr. Sun Hui, Secretary General of Tencent Culture and Tourism Research Institute; Mr. Leo Chong Chi Kuan, Chairman of Senge Data Technology Macao Ltd.; and Mr. Ma Chenglong, Specialist of the Technical Research Team at Pachira Information Technology Co., Ltd.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>AI: a positive force for change<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Dr. Dai explained that AI had largely changed people\u2019s way of travelling. He gave an example: \u201cBefore arriving at a destination, AI helps us predict pedestrian flow so that we can plan our sightseeing schedules accordingly, to avoid very crowded times.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The scholar noted that AI\u2019s impact on tourism extended beyond the length of a specific trip. For instance, the technology could even influence how people would remember a particular holiday, by optimising and customising digital albums of videos and photographs taken by visitors during that trip. Such impact of AI, argued Dr. Dai, should be regarded as positive, as it contributed to enhancing visitors\u2019 overall experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However, there were challenges involved in using AI to promote tourism development, stressed the President of the China Tourism Academy. Collecting the vast volumes of data needed to train AI models could raise privacy protection concerns, including among those living in tourism destinations. \u201cIt is always important to listen to different people to maintain a balance among the interested parties,\u201d suggested Dr. Dai.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Nonetheless, AI could help tourism operators achieve performance improvements regarding visitor experience, including during pre-, mid-, and post-travel periods, stated Mr. Sun from Tencent Culture and Tourism Research Institute. The latter is a prominent Mainland-based research body in the field of integrated innovation in technology and cultural tourism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cBusiness-wise, using AI can significantly lower the cost of customer service,\u201d he said. An example provided by Mr. Sun was the use of AI-powered chatbots to provide travel assistance to visitors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>He added: \u201cFrom a visitor\u2019s standpoint, AI can provide a lot of support, namely in terms of planning, ticket booking, and acting as an on-site tour guide. Even after the trip, AI can customise souvenirs to give the holiday a perfect ending.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Technology development<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Senge Data Technology&#8217;s Mr. Chong agreed that AI is the future, but he noted that the technology&#8217;s development path was complex. \u201cResearchers and investigators need financial support to carry on; we need users\u2019 feedback to improve and further promote AI usage; and users need to be provided with interesting features to keep using AI-powered applications or services,\u201d he said. \u201cThese are all connected and are influential to the development of the technology.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Senge and its Shenzhen, Guangdong Province-based parent are recognised for their terrestrial and space-borne remote-sensing platforms. Senge has plans to utilise these capabilities to construct a metaverse view of Macao, using collected data combined with real-scene 3D modelling and employing AI. This approach aims to enable the aggregation, analysis, and calculation of urban \u2018big data\u2019, leading to precise models.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Discussing cross-border collaboration via AI technology among tourism stakeholders in the Greater Bay Area, Mr. Chong highlighted the importance of scale. \u201cWe can connect the Ruins of Saint Paul\u2019s area with, for example, the Tap Seac area, and gradually connect all different areas in Macao so that visitors and residents can easily obtain information on all spots,\u201d he explained. \u201cThen, we can enlarge the models to a city scale, and later to a regional scale, to establish cross-border collaboration.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Mr. Ma, from AI-specialist Pachira, said the technology was already of great use for tourists. For instance, AI-powered real-time translation mobile applications were a quick and easy way to access information about attractions when in a foreign destination, he said. But the expert also cautioned that AI use still faced challenges. \u201cOne is about privacy protection, another one is about cost control,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIndeed, AI is just a tool. The most important thing is to use it appropriately. We can create a platform that is co-managed by stakeholders within the Greater Bay Area, thus cooperating and building creative and cultural products that meet users\u2019 needs,\u201d suggested Mr. Ma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Editor: UTM Public Relations Team<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The \u201cHigh-level Forum on Greater Bay Area Tourism Development 2024\u201d, part of the 2024 Macao International Travel (Industry) Expo, provided valuable insights into the transformative potential of artificial intelligence in [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":11526,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"gallery","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1999,136],"tags":[1105,3023,1976,745,400,1844,2861,402,1224,1432,2859],"class_list":["post-11523","post","type-post","status-publish","format-gallery","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-greater-bay-area","category-main_headline","tag-alliance-for-developing-macao-into-the-guangdong-hong-kong-macao-greater-bay-area-tourism-education-and-training-base","tag-artificial-technology","tag-china-tourism-academy","tag-greater-bay-area","tag-macao","tag-macao-international-travel-industry-expo","tag-macao-university-of-tourism","tag-tourism","tag-tourism-development","tag-tourism-education-and-training-base-for-the-guangdong-hong-kong-macao-greater-bay-area","tag-utm","post_format-post-format-gallery"],"views":2541,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11523","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/18"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=11523"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11523\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11534,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/11523\/revisions\/11534"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11526"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=11523"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=11523"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.utm.edu.mo\/NewsPortal\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=11523"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}