Since its acquisition of ITA Matrix Software eight years ago, Google has been quietly rolling out new tools for travelers. Its progress has been even more notable over the past months and weeks as it began unveiling tools to help predict flight delays, plan trips, and manage itineraries--among other things.

In the next 20 years, travellers exploring the world will experience a whole different journey – one that will evolve in real-time, long before setting off. Innovations using big data, artificial intelligence and machine learning will redefine the future of how we get from door to door. Already, tech companies are disrupting how we think about efficient, convenient travel by streamlining and personalising the experience. "In a future where our world is overlaid with augmented reality, expect to look forward to the journey as well as the destination," says Mark Holt, chief technology officer at Trainline, Europe's leading independent rail and coach travel platform. When planning to undertake a journey in 2040, humans will be assisted by mobile technology made up of bendable smartphones and must-have fashion accessories such as smart watches and augmented reality headsets.

Let's face it: despite advancements in technology, booking travel can still be an onerous experience. Booking the right place to stay on most services and figuring out logistics still feels like it takes longer than it should. Airbnb Vice President of Engineering Mike Curtis envisions a day in the not-so-distant future when that doesn't have to be the case, when Airbnb offers heavily personalized experiences that include not just where you're staying, but other details also, including transportation and entertainment. All of it would be powered by rapidly-evolving technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning. "Imagine if one day, Airbnb wants to be able to offer a true end-to-end trip: it's personalized, and just right for you," Curtis suggested during an interview at the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing.

Nearly 85 percent of travel and hospitality professionals are using AI within their businesses, according to a recent survey by Tata Consultancy Services, which is based in India. So far, the use is largely limited to their information-technology departments, with 46 percent of companies saying they use it for functions such as processing bookings and credit-card transactions. But within four years, 60 percent of companies surveyed said that AI would expand to their marketing efforts - persuading you to book their products. Indeed, most of the AI firepower is reserved for the back-end systems designed to squeeze more profit out of an airline seat or hotel room, or to improve the efficiency of airport operations. For example, flight disruptions cost airlines billions each year, so airports are deploying AI systems to quickly deal with irregular operations.

German car maker BMW has announced that it is joining forces with US computer chip giant Intel and the Israeli technology firm Mobileye to develop self-driving cars. The three companies'are collaborating to bring solutions for highly and fully automated driving into series production by 2021,' they said in a joint statement. The news comes amid growing interest in self-driving cars following tests over the past few years by Google and research by several major automakers. The future of BMW could see driverless cars rolled out by 2021 in an effort to make travel'safer and easier'. Pictured is the German car firm's i3 electric car Germany's premium auto makers are at the centre of thecountry's global reputation for meticulous engineering. But with the expected shift in focus from a car's body toits brains, the risk is that the expertise will accumulate insilicon valley or in China, rather than Germany's carmakingregions of Bavaria and Baden-Wuerttemburg.

Self-driving cars are expected to usher in a new era of mobility, safety and convenience. The problem, say transportation researchers, is that people will use them too much. Experts foresee robot cars chauffeuring children to school, dance class and baseball practice. The disabled and elderly will have new mobility. Commuters will be able to work, sleep, eat or watch movies on the way to the office.

Self-driving cars are expected to usher in a new era of mobility, safety and convenience, but they could also lead to more traffic jams. The problem is that too many people will use the technology when it becomes widely available, according to transport researchers. Experts foresee robot cars chauffeuring children to school, dance class and baseball practice. The disabled and elderly will have new mobility. Self-driving cars will give commuters a new freedom as they travel to the office, but they could also lead to more vehicles on the road, according to transport experts.

The computer screen in an autonomous prototype Continental Chrysler 300C sedan is seen during an event featuring numerous self-driving cars on Capitol Hill in Washington March 15, 2016. WASHINGTON -- Self-driving cars are expected to usher in a new era of mobility, safety and convenience. The problem, say transportation researchers, is that people will use them too much. Researchers believe the number of miles driven will skyrocket. It's less certain whether that will mean a corresponding surge in traffic congestion, but it's a clear possibility.