Mistletoe grows; new αFund seeks to raise $300m-$400m for positive impact investments
Fund started by Taizo Son and Atsushi Tarai buys SoftBank Ventures, aims to build ecosystem of “like-minded investors and founders”
After eight years of running the global seed stage innovation driven impact vehicle, Mistletoe, as a family fund, co-founders Atsushi Taira and Taizo Son are rea [...]
Tribe Tours Singapore goes all in on accessibility and automation
Pilot tours on Sentosa and automation to consolidate bookings from multiple sources to streamline operations.
With inbound travel expected to soften to Singapore this year, due to the strong currency, stiffer competition and higher costs of living, one of the city state’s leading tour companies, [...]
Goodbye 2023, Hello 2024: Travel leaders set trends and predictions (Part 1)
As we enter the last weeks of 2023, we ask our community of travel leaders to share their reflections of the year and their outlook for the coming one in this series of trends and predictions for 2024. This first instalment carries a mixed bag of sentiment, with some more bullish than others. What i [...]
The audience decides at this year’s Great WiT Debate – “AI will make us less human”
Leaders from some of the world’s biggest travel and tech companies debate for and against… but audience sides with the FOR team!
Leaders from Agoda, Global Tix, Airbnb, Expedia and Klook took to the stage for Web in Travel’s infamous Great Debate this year at the WiT Singapore conference Oct [...]
Does AI speak in a loud voice, or is it monotone like the sci-fi movies?
It seems like you can’t go 30-minutes these days without hearing talk of Artificial Intelligence or seeing AI-related posts on social media - and for good reason. AI, now dubbed “the new internet”, “the biggest paradigm shift since the iPhone”, and “our future overlord”, has advanced a [...]
Creation platform, AI chatbot for corporate bookings, payments – Amadeus continues in quest to simplify travel
“In Asia, I sometimes use John Smith, simpler for everyone”: Javier Laforgue
It’s just slightly over a year since this veteran in air distribution moved to Singapore to head up Asia Pacific for Amadeus. He came in at a time of “the renewal of travel” in the region. With the region fully o [...]
GetYourGuide gets into pole position to win in $250b experiences market
The biggest risk is cultural risk, says CEO Johannes Reck
Racing between meetings, and fresh from watching his first Singapore Grand Prix, you could say that Johannes Reck, CEO and co-founder of GetYourGuide, is as on top of the world as Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz, who won the Singapore race.
Afte [...]
Accor to double down on digital marketing with learnings from pandemic
Lessons learnt are “valuable long-term gains”, says Ollie Ansell
Bar tending requires pretty similar skills to revenue management, when you think about it. Both require you to be good at reading signals, except with the former, it’s reading human cues on the spot and with the latter, it’s a [...]
Singapore to unleash arts everywhere by taking it to the people
Catch-all platform, Singaporean music movement, buskers, lively precincts – NAC unveils five-year roadmap to create city with soul
The link between arts and tourism is well-proven. Cities like New York and London, beyond Broadway and West End respectively, have an always-on arts scene, where a [...]
From AI to AR/VR, airports on cusp of digital transformation, says Amadeus’ Samuel
Narita’s Face Express a good example of enhanced passenger experience
The single biggest trend that will impact airports in the next few years is the evolution of the passenger experience, said Sarah Samuel, Senior Vice President, Airport & Airline Operations, APAC Amadeus.
Speaking at Wi [...]
