Emirates adds rail. Amadeus’ solid growth. Ask Maps adds hotels. Trivago ups AI spend.
Emirates Skywards adds European rail booking
Emirates Skywards has launched Skywards Rail, a new service letting members redeem miles for train tickets covering over 12,000 destinations across Europe. The program connects to more than 40 major rail operators in 12 countries — including Eurostar, [...]
Tale of three startups: Discover, trust, experience and an investor’s take
It couldn’t have been better planned – the Founders & Futures: Global Startup Showcase at WiT Phocuswright Barcelona. On stage were three startups covering three stages of the traveller journey and facing them, Roger Sharp, chair of Technology Queenstown and investor via North Ridge Partners [...]
APAC air passenger demand up, amidst overall decline due to fuel prices
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) released data for June 2026 global passenger demand:
Total demand, measured in revenue passenger kilometers (RPK), was down 1.7% compared to June 2025. Excluding the Middle East, demand declined by 0.6%. Total capacity, measured in available [...]
Expedia Group acquires Layla to bolster its AI-powered trip planning and booking strategy
Acquisition accelerates Expedia Group’s AI-native trip planning offerings spanning the full journey – from inspiration, to planning, booking, and support for travelers worldwide
Expedia Group announced that it has acquired Layla, an AI-native trip planning and booking platform that helps tr [...]
AI surge meets a crowded digital landscape in Thailand’s online travel boom
How local giants, government super-apps, and sky-high AI enthusiasm are reshaping how Thais book their trips
Thailand's digital economy hit $56 billion in 2025 and is on track for $90 billion by 2030, but online travel growth actually cooled off - up just 6% YoY to $11 billion after a 34% jump in 2 [...]
Atlas adds Volaris. TravelAI relaunches Sonder. Agoda x Bank of America. AI receptionist cuts response time.
TravelAI relaunches Sonder.com as AI-powered boutique guide
TravelAI has acquired the Sonder brand, including the SONDER trademark across more than 50 countries and over 70 domain names, notably Sonder.com, from the bankruptcy estates of Sonder's Canadian entities, following court-supervised procee [...]
Booking.com’s playbook for Oceania and Korea includes AI, authenticity, and regulatory collaboration
Todd Lacey, Booking.com’s Regional Manager for Oceania and Korea, is in charge of markets that fall all across the spectrum of travel maturity and demand. But Lacey’s focus isn’t on what separates these regions, it’s what unites them. "Travellers are really looking for that sort of unique ex [...]
How Nikhil Ravishankar is navigating Air New Zealand’s perfect storm
Air New Zealand’s CEO, Nikhil Ravishankar, knows he’s in the hot seat. And Roger Sharp, chairman of Technology Queenstown, called it plainly when beginning their coffee chat that opened WiT Queenstown.
“You’ve taken over New Zealand’s perfect storm,” Sharp said. “Engine issues, high [...]
Spotnana’s multi-agent AI. OTAs’ growth story. Mindtrip tackles AI answers.
Spotnana brings multi-agent AI to travel servicing
Spotnana has launched a multi-agent AI architecture on its travel platform, pairing specialized AI agents with its APIs to automate deterministic workflows, and is rolling out an open, customizable system that partners can build on; the initial rel [...]
SMEs and the golden AI moment: Lessons on how to seize it
How ready are SMEs to seize the AI moment? That was the question asked at WiT Indie, and moderator Sarah Wan of Klook kicked off the session by asking her panellists to rate their AI-readiness on a scale of 1 to 10.
Vikram Malhi, CEO and founder of ZUZU Hospitality, a revenue management platform [...]
