Miral steps up concierge services using Azure OpenAI Service to offer 24/7 guidance for fantasy escapes

With Miral, Abu Dhabi is more than a destination; it's a memorable journey. Miral is responsible for some of the most thrilling leisure, entertainment, and tourism experiences in Abu Dhabi. Operating a diverse portfolio of world-class and award-winning immersive experiences and attractions, its goal is to “invigorate all senses and create memories that last a lifetime”—from the adrenaline of Ferrari World Yas Island, Abu Dhabi to the elegance of Yas Island's marinas.

Pioneering with data

“Miral has always looked to cutting-edge technology to elevate and enhance our operations and the experience of our customers," shares Sulaiman Habahbeh, Planning and Business Partner at Miral. Miral made a significant leap on this journey in 2020 with the strategic initiative titled Noor Analytics. Using Microsoft Azure and Cognitive Services, Miral aimed to transform into a data-driven organization. "No decision is made without relying on concrete data," describes Ghassan Zaghloul, Business Transformation Analyst at Miral Experiences. “Through this initiative, we sought to revolutionize how we interact with customers, aiming to streamline decisions and open new revenue streams with the help of Microsoft technology.”

Miral’s next leap came with generative AI. The company decided to use intelligent systems to handle customer inquiries, starting with its website for Yas Island. “Traditional bots often fail to satisfy or address customer needs,” shares Raed Kuhail, Chief Information Officer at Miral. “We didn’t want to settle for traditional.”

Enhancing customer experiences with AI

Miral started working on a proof of concept, seeking help from its long-time partner for a swift implementation. “Microsoft immediately showed support, sending us subject matter experts who conducted workshops to educate us about the state of generative AI, the underlying technology, architecture, and the intricacies of prompt engineering,” recalls Diala Mazin Alshafei, Omni Experience Manager at Miral Destinations. “Given that the Yas Island website is an open platform where anyone can ask any question, we needed to ensure that it was not possible for someone to manipulate the system into providing inappropriate responses, thus causing reputational damage.”

Transforming guests’ interactions

In just two months, the new Majd AI ambassador built with Azure OpenAI Service was ready to greet the visitors. “Within the first week of launch, our AI chatbot successfully completed over 1,700 operations,” adds Habahbeh. “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive. We have not received a single complaint about the product through any of our feedback channels.”

Thanks to the bot, visitors can easily obtain detailed information and personalized recommendations through the Majd AI ambassador. The chatbot can handle a wide array of inquiries—from event schedules to intricate family-specific needs, transferring visitors to a human agent, if necessary.

“The advantage of this system is that people are providing more comprehensive descriptions of their situations or intentions, allowing us to give them more tailored answers through this product,” Zaghloul notes. “You could simply tell the chatbot: ‘I like this type of food, my son likes another, and my wife is allergic to this.’ Based on this information, you could receive recommendations across the island on activities, dining options within the parks, shopping, the best times to visit parks, and suitable rides, if you specify the age of your kids."

The chatbot efficiently resolves the bulk of inquiries. "After we implemented the system, there was a noticeable drop in Yas Concierge calls because the chatbot addresses inquiries very effectively," Alshafei adds. “The transfer to agents dropped by 3% in about two months, which means our call center is freed up to handle the unique queries that require human interaction.”

Evolving toward an AI-powered future

Miral has ambitious plans to make the most of the AI assistant. "We aim to extend transactions across all our channels while enabling image and voice recognition within the chatbot," Habahbeh says. “Our goal is to make the chatbot into a salesman available 24/7, able to help and guide our guests as soon as they start dreaming about their next adventure.”

With a successful concierge, Miral is also considering broader applications for AI. "Next, we’ll explore Copilot for Microsoft 365, because we want everyone to understand and experience the capabilities of generative AI," Habahbeh explains. “We want them to experiment with AI hands-on. This will lay the groundwork for more use cases.”

But the overarching goal stays the same: unparalleled customer experience. Reflecting on its journey so far, Kuhail sums up, “If I were to describe this journey in one word, it would be a 'race'. We did it in record time to get something complex up and running. And despite the initial uncertainty, it was very enjoyable because it helps us serve customers even better.”