AI in Travel

For today's pod we look at Vrbo's tough love with hosts, Accor's revamped loyalty program, and slow AI adoption across Europe.

As AI capabilities expand, tourism agencies must decide how long they'll remain cautious observers of AI or go for systematic implementation.

Private equity would probably look at the contrarian hands-on approach of Butterfield & Robinson and say it's too costly and unscalable as a tour operator business. But consider the payoff: Record revenue, and over half of customers coming back for high-margin seconds.

Trip.com is promising less work for travelers. Now it must show that less work means better trips and more bookings.

When it comes to potential disruption from the ChatGPT peer group, Airbnb's large proportion of direct traffic would be a buffer. On the other hand, Booking.com has been a leader over the years in adapting to new marketing channels and using them to advantage.

Too often, hotels operate on gut feeling. The right data can help operators find millions in extra profit.

For today’s pod, we look at yet another AI improvement for Google‘s travel products, more foreign visa scrutiny in the US, and what high train fares mean for climate change.

Google's Pixel 10 phones have come up with a useful feature, but expect others to follow. How old-fashioned to be fumbling to find your flight details.

Millions of road warriors dread filing their trip expenses. SAP Concur believes that generative AI can finally automate expense reporting's most tedious tasks.

The best hospitality lessons in the world might come from a street vendor with a wok and a plastic stool on a Bangkok sidewalk. In an industry chasing AI, automation, and scale, the brands that win will be the ones that remain unmistakably human.