Industrial Revolution, quite a buzzword, isn't it?

As Industry 4.0 unfolds, it leaves us perplexed as to what all it has in store for us. 
If we unravel what the transformation is all about, Industry 4.0 brings with it a set of enhanced technology, which is not only more innovative but efficient as well. It will not be wrong of us to assert that machines are getting smarter and it's ready to change the game for us. It's going to impact how we work, communicate, travel, or even live.

While Industry 4.0 is going to redefine the existence of human beings in the next century, Tourism 4.0 appears with the quest to unlock the innovation potential in the whole travel sector.

This new paradigm will come in action with the help of key enabling technologies from the Industry 4.0 like Big Data, Robotics & Automation, Artificial Intelligence, and Internet of Things.

Amid one of the most significant transformations, India is paving its way to identify the opportunities and leverage the best that technology has to offer. While the innovations and transitions engine the growth of manufacturing and operational sector, the travel industry being an ever-evolving and the most progressive one is no exception to it.

Let's address the technology innovations coming to us:

-    As the future holds a great increase in tourism, Internet of Things, as a new emerging technology, streamlines your travel experience, making it more customised and connected. With a continuous stream of information, people can know more about the world while companies can know more about people. Based on the absolute volume of adoption and the ability to offer advanced interconnection and communication among devices, systems, and services, the Internet of Things is expected to bring disruption in the travel industry. The technology is also expected to blur the lines between the physical and virtual worlds and introduce automated processes without any human-to-computer or human-to-human interaction. One can't apprehend the changes that new technologies are bringing, but twenty to thirty years down the line, we will all be able to understand Industry 4.0's full potential and how it had stimulated the whole experience of travelling.

-    Machines may not have taken over the world yet, but they are seeping into our lives and beginning a change. Artificial Intelligence brings along with it the power of automation, helping make travel experiences more niche and targeted towards the travellers. From booking flights to choosing hotels, the development of AI into this sector has revolutionized and automated almost every process to enhance your overall travel experience. Here, we are talking about an industry where time is critical, and information is constantly changing, the indispensable capabilities AI make the user applications more effective. Provided the complexity and vastness of the concept; it appears there’s still a long way to go before Artificial Intelligence has a firm grip on the travel industry. It could be hidden in algorithms, and even if people don't recognize it, there is no question that AI will keep moulding the way we travel in the future, making our experience as smooth as possible.

-    Given that the travel industry has always been at the forefront of experimenting with new things, Big Data enables personalizing and enhancing an individual traveller’s journey while also letting the businesses identify the ever-evolving customer demands and expectations. Simply collecting the information isn’t enough to be able to use it effectively, Big Data as a tool, enables to draw actionable conclusions from the data and allow for greater adaptability, catering to a new generation of connected customers who expect new experiences. By identifying consumer trends, travel patterns, best products and services, the data collected has the potential to reshape the travel industry. The insights that the tourism board and companies drive from the data help them pinpointing marketing campaigns, personalized offers tailored to travellers,  and respond to tourists’ needs nearly immediately. Big data in tourism is still “a work in progress”, but we can foresee cities and tourism industry increasingly use the innovation to their advantage, truly revolutionizing the complete experience.

-    Is Blockchain in tourism ready to take off? In India, although Blockchain is still in a nascent stage, its emergence had generated significant interest across a wide range of industries. The travel industry relies upon different companies passing information between one another, and with data being decentralised in the blockchain technology, the important information can never go 'offline' or be lost through accidental deletion or a malicious cyber-attack, ensuring transactions are always traceable. The algorithms that blockchain uses are designed to avoid modifications in the blocks, keeping the data intact. After identifying Blockchain's potential, the industry is exploring its roles in areas like Seamless Transactions and Settlement, Inventory Management for Greater Visibility, Identity Management with Enhanced Security, etc.  If though it is a long, hard road, Blockchain and tourism have the potential to turn into a very advantageous combination as it provides more security and transparency to critical touchpoints in the industry.

We can all witness an acceleration in technology, and it's inevitable that it is soon going to change the game for travellers. The technology will connect us to the world and unfold new possibilities while leaving us to wonder what else it has in store for the future traveller.

Today, as we stand on the brink of the most transformative revolution ever, do you think India is ready to keep up with the dizzying pace and embrace the change that it brings along?  

Sources: 
-    https://www.forbes.com/sites/bernardmarr/2018/09/02/what-is-industry-4-0-heres-a-super-easy-explanation-for-anyone/#5445ad389788
-    http://www.forbesindia.com/blog/alibaba/destination-future-trends-and-predictions-for-travel-hospitality/
-    https://www.phocuswire.com/11-thoughts-on-the-future-of-technology-in-travel-and-hospitality-from-CES-2018
-    https://www.financialexpress.com/industry/what-is-industry-4-0-why-it-offers-huge-opportunity-for-india/1452171/
-    https://www.tourism4-0.org/#9998_eng
-    https://cdn.intechopen.com/pdfs/65836.pdf