The panel that kicked it off – from left, moderator Timothy Hughes, Agoda; Jonathan Tong, Amadeus; Adrienne Enggist, Booking.com; Amy Wei, Trip.com Group; Tan Bee Leng, Ascott; and David Liu, Klook
Download Global Travel Tech Thinktank 2024 report here
At a secluded gathering on Sentosa Island, Singapore, some of the travel industry’s most influential players met to discuss a subject that’s poised to change the way we see the world – literally.
The Global Travel Tech Thinktank, an invite-only collaboration between Web in Travel (WiT), Phocuswright, and Phocuswire, brought together 50 executives from companies like Booking, Agoda, Klook and Trip.com to hash out the future of travel tech.
Their focus this year? AI. More specifically, how generative AI, personalisation, and human-machine interfaces will shape the next generation of travel.
This year’s theme, The Next Generation in Travel Tech, wasn’t just about new gadgets or better algorithms. It was about understanding the massive shifts AI is bringing to everything from customer service to personalisation and what that means for travellers.
Here are the major insights and predictions from the event, which just might hint at how we’ll book, plan, and experience travel in the coming years.
Idan Zalzberg: “There is no textbook; I’d love to hire an AI expert to guide us, but we need to bring them from the future. We need to become those people.”
AI Is Personalising Travel Like Never Before – But There Are Limits
The first topic on the agenda was the immense potential of AI to make travel experiences more personal. AI has gone from basic recommendations to more complex tasks like summarizing itineraries and interpreting traveller intent, opening up a new realm of possibilities for tailoring experiences. But according to Idan Zalzberg, CTO of Agoda, there’s still a long way to go.
“All of these tasks that have been solely human are now something computers can assist with,” Zalzberg said. But while AI can provide an unprecedented level of personalisation, he cautioned that it’s not always reliable. Generative AI, in particular, is unpredictable, producing results that can vary wildly, even when applied to similar tasks.
David Liu, Chief Customer Experience Officer at Klook, also voiced concerns about the limits of AI-driven personalisation in travel. “Given the more occasional touchpoints an OTA typically has with travellers, it can be challenging to gain a deep enough understanding of their preferences. There is also the challenge of ensuring that recommendations are both accurate and feasible,” he said.
Brainstorming in action, led by Ittai Chorev, Chief Product Officer, Agoda.
Privacy and Trust Are Key to AI-Driven Travel
One challenge that came up repeatedly was privacy. While travellers want more personalised experiences, they’re also cautious about how much data they’re willing to share. AI may promise hyper-personalisation, but it can’t get there without access to users’ private data.
“People are cautious to share data unless they see a clear return and benefit,” said Amy Wei, Senior Product Director at Trip.com Group.
To address this, the thinktank recommended that companies enhance trust by integrating verifiable citations into their AI-generated responses, so users know where information is coming from. In other words, if an AI suggests a restaurant or activity, users should be able to see the source of that recommendation.
The solution might also lie in using on-device AI models that can process data locally, allowing for some degree of personalisation without sending data back to centralized servers. This way, travel companies can offer custom experiences without compromising privacy.
Etraveli Group’s Lisa Katsouraki leading one of the group workouts.
AI Is Changing Customer Service Jobs, Not Replacing Them
AI isn’t just transforming customer experiences; it’s also reshaping the workforce. Amy Wei, Senior Product Director at Trip.com Group, explained how AI has enabled customer service teams to focus on more complex and fulfilling tasks by handling repetitive, routine inquiries. This shift allows human agents to apply more empathy and creativity in their interactions, moving beyond scripted responses.
“This collaborative effort allows the team to maintain high standards in customer communication, leveraging technology to amplify efficiency while retaining cultural accuracy,” Wei said.
In a global industry like travel, the ability to translate nuanced requests between languages, say, Japanese to Thai, requires both precision and cultural sensitivity, something AI can support but not fully replace.
However, the thinktank cautioned against applying AI too broadly without considering the role of human oversight. They advised companies to create clear role classifications, identifying which tasks are best suited for automation and which require human skills, particularly in high-stakes interactions.
Jonathan Tong, Amadeus (right): “AI is already doing more than just calculate customer lifetime value”
Airlines Using AI to Anticipate Customer Needs
As airlines experiment with becoming more like online travel agencies (OTAs), AI is helping them take strides towards deeper customer insights and more targeted offers. Jonathan Tong, Senior Vice President, Head of South-east Asia, India Subcontinent & Greater China, Amadeus, highlighted how AI is enabling airlines to anticipate customer needs in ways they couldn’t before, even predicting when a traveller might be on the brink of losing loyalty and proactively taking steps to retain them.
“AI is already doing more than just calculate customer lifetime value – it’s leveraging data and metrics to identify customer churn and taking action; for example, when a customer might be losing loyalty and take action to re-engage them to bring them back,” Tong explained.
Still, structural limitations prevent airlines from fully replicating the flexibility of OTAs, which bundle products and services from multiple sources. But with AI agents handling tasks like cancellations, amendments, and coordination with suppliers, airlines are inching closer to offering a seamless, OTA-like experience.
AI-Driven Personalisation Has Potential for Inclusive Travel
Another promising area of discussion was AI’s role in democratizing travel. Platforms can now use AI to “interpret the fire hose of intent” from travellers, allowing them to serve niche groups more effectively. For instance, by identifying travel patterns among LGBTQ+ travellers or travellers with disabilities, platforms can offer more inclusive, tailored experiences.
“If we can interpret human language well enough to understand and infer causal relationships, we open up a new level of personalised travel experiences,” said Adrienne Enggist, Senior Director of Product – Customer Experience and Platforms, Booking.com. “You can’t just ask users directly, but you can subtly infer needs through behaviour.”
This approach could enable travel platforms to surface options that resonate with users’ unique needs without directly asking intrusive questions. It’s a step towards making travel more accessible for everyone, not just mainstream travellers.
Booking’s Adrienne Enggist leading one of the group workouts: “AI’s control over the tech stack and user experience could redefine digital interactions, setting the stage for a more adaptive, responsive interface design.”
The Future of Travel Websites: AI-Driven Interfaces
One of the more futuristic discussions at the thinktank revolved around AI’s potential to take control of digital interfaces entirely. Rather than static, hard-coded websites, the future might involve dynamic, composable screens managed by AI. Enggist described this as “moving beyond just creating fixed websites” to a more fluid, responsive design that adapts based on user preferences and real-time data.
“We’re beyond just creating fixed websites; it’s about allowing machines to manage the UI in a hybrid mode,” Enggist explained. “AI’s control over the tech stack and user experience could redefine digital interactions, setting the stage for a more adaptive, responsive interface design.”
This concept could radically change how we interact with travel platforms, as AI becomes not only the engine behind recommendations but also the architect of the interface itself.
The Path Forward: Collaboration and Ethical AI
The 2024 Global Travel Tech Thinktank highlighted not only the transformative power of AI but also the responsibility that comes with it. Industry leaders acknowledged that there’s no “playbook” for AI in travel yet – companies will have to work together to set standards and best practices. Privacy, ethical considerations, and transparency will be crucial as the industry navigates these changes.
“There is no textbook; I’d love to hire an AI expert to guide us, but we need to bring them from the future,” Zalzberg quipped. “We need to become those people.”
The consensus? AI will continue to reshape the travel industry in profound ways, but its potential will only be fully realized through collaboration, trust-building, and a commitment to inclusive, privacy-respecting design. As travel companies work to balance innovation with ethics, the path forward may define the future of travel tech for years to come.
So next time you book a trip, don’t be surprised if your travel app feels a little more like it knows you personally – because it just might.
