PhocusWire

The competition for high-ranking links is evolving as brands ride shifting tides of #artificialintelligence (AI)-driven traffic and discoverability. According to @Phocuswright Research, 56% of U.S. travelers are using AI for travel, with generative AI (gen AI) serving as a crucial discovery entry point. As the pivot to #AI continues, travel companies are navigating what feels like a pile of search acronyms including search engine optimization (#SEO), generative engine optimization (#GEO) and answer engine optimization (#AEO) Get the full story on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/4m1wVmr

#Groupbooking specialist @Lobby has raised $2.2 million in funding as it looks to expand beyond hospitality to other segments within travel. The investment in the @Switzerland-based company came from @founderful. Pascal Mathis, co-founder of the venture capital firm and a co-founder of @GetYourGuide, joins #Lobby’s board of directors. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4m1wVmr

The competition for high-ranking links is evolving as brands ride shifting tides of #artificialintelligence (AI)-driven traffic and discoverability. According to @Phocuswright Research, 56% of U.S. travelers are using AI for travel, with generative AI (gen AI) serving as a crucial discovery entry point. As the pivot to #AI continues, travel companies are navigating what feels like a pile of search acronyms including search engine optimization (#SEO), generative engine optimization (#GEO) and answer engine optimization (#AEO) Get the full story on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/4m1wVmr

Byway (@bywaytravel ), a @phocuswire Hot25 #Startup of 2025, is bringing #flightfree travel into the mainstream in the U.K. through a partnership with TUI. The deal places Byway into 329 #TUI retail stores nationwide, enabling agents to sell overland options alongside traditional package holidays and giving the company access to a large #offlinedistribution channel. Read more on #PhocusWire bit.ly/3PEwLVV

Over half of active U.S. travelers are now using #artificialintelligence (AI) in relation to #travel. According to @Phocuswright's latest research report The #AI Surge: Travel's Fastest Behavioral Shift in a Decade, 56% of travelers used AI for #planning, booking or #indestination assistance for at least one trip in the past 12 months, up from 43% in the second half 2025 and 33% in the first half 2025. Among #travelers who have used AI, 94% have used it for travel specifically. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire bit.ly/40Tvvkc

Go With Rosie is a #familytravel company that helps parents discover, plan and book #trips without the 27-tab research nightmare. Scoring every venue zero to 100 for actual family-friendliness (not marketing labels), build drag-and-drop itineraries that account for nap times and meltdowns and let families book #hotels in one place. Planning is free. #GoWithRosie makes money from hotel bookings, building a data-driven ecosystem for families, from families. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/4bt3Bll

While travel demand in #AsiaPacific (#APAC) remains strong, early-stage #startups may find it harder to secure #funding. According to an upcoming @Phocuswright #research report, “A Market Rewired: Ten Structural Shifts Redefining Asia Pacific Travel,” investors increasingly are prioritizing “financial rigor and selectivity.” Macro uncertainties, geopolitical tensions and changing #traveler behavior are shaping the market, according to Nick Cocks, partner at #VelocityVentures. “The startup environment, specifically, is undergoing a strategic shift toward building durable, high-value businesses,” Cocks said. Read more on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4sX2HDi

@OpenAI recently made headlines with its move to deprioritize Instant Checkout in @ChatGPT, but efforts to advance AI-powered travel booking show no signs of slowing. The AI company’s pivot boosted #OTA stock prices and led to broad speculation about the viability of agentic commerce. But the explanation may be simpler. Continue reading the full article by Cathy Walsh on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4t5Fy1y

#Tripadvisor has reached an agreement with its shareholder #StarboardValue which will see four new directors join Tripadvisor’s board. The move follows a letter sent by Starboard last month to CEO #MattGoldberg, chairman #GregMaffei and the directors regarding the lack of change and value creation at Tripadvisor. #Starboard owns more than 9% of the company and has provided feedback to Tripadvisor’s management on a number of occasions about the company's #performance. Read Linda Fox's latest article now on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/3NDLgc4

With #artificialintelligence (AI) becoming central to travel strategy, "AI-native" has emerged as the sector's favorite new label. The term has become a strategic catch-all, carrying various meanings for companies at different stages. In a legacy overhaul, Sabre restructured its leadership team, later unveiling a “once-in-a-generation rebuild” of its tech stack with #AI compatibility in mind. @Airbnb said it is layering AI across its experience to transform service, while Riyadh Air partnered with @IBM to make #Riyadh an AI-driven #airline. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4d0uL4e

Go With Rosie is a #familytravel company that helps parents discover, plan and book #trips without the 27-tab research nightmare. Scoring every venue zero to 100 for actual family-friendliness (not marketing labels), build drag-and-drop itineraries that account for nap times and meltdowns and let families book #hotels in one place. Planning is free. #GoWithRosie makes money from hotel bookings, building a data-driven ecosystem for families, from families. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/4bt3Bll

While travel demand in #AsiaPacific (#APAC) remains strong, early-stage #startups may find it harder to secure #funding. According to an upcoming @Phocuswright #research report, “A Market Rewired: Ten Structural Shifts Redefining Asia Pacific Travel,” investors increasingly are prioritizing “financial rigor and selectivity.” Macro uncertainties, geopolitical tensions and changing #traveler behavior are shaping the market, according to Nick Cocks, partner at #VelocityVentures. “The startup environment, specifically, is undergoing a strategic shift toward building durable, high-value businesses,” Cocks said. Read more on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4sX2HDi

The #globaltravel landscape is undergoing a fundamental shift, driven by travelers who increasingly prioritize experiences, personalization and meaningful connections. For Trip.com Group, this transformation is not merely a response to changing consumer behavior but an opportunity to define a new era of experiential #travel. As the company strengthens its one-stop ecosystem, #Attractions and #Tours is emerging as one of the most dynamic engines of growth, powered by technology, partner integration and global scale. Get the full story on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/3PdS00O

@CapitalOne has launched a standalone mobile application for its #travel platform, allowing #cardholders to book #travel, redeem #rewards and track trips in real time, including #airportlounge capacity and waitlist updates. The #app provides a travel-specific mobile channel separate from the company’s core #banking functionality. The existing web version of #CapitalOneTravel will continue to be available. Read more on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4rNZhlB

The #globaltravel landscape is undergoing a fundamental shift, driven by travelers who increasingly prioritize experiences, personalization and meaningful connections. For Trip.com Group, this transformation is not merely a response to changing consumer behavior but an opportunity to define a new era of experiential #travel. As the company strengthens its one-stop ecosystem, #Attractions and #Tours is emerging as one of the most dynamic engines of growth, powered by technology, partner integration and global scale. Get the full story on #PhocusWire now. bit.ly/3PdS00O

With #artificialintelligence (AI) becoming central to travel strategy, "AI-native" has emerged as the sector's favorite new label. The term has become a strategic catch-all, carrying various meanings for companies at different stages. In a legacy overhaul, Sabre restructured its leadership team, later unveiling a “once-in-a-generation rebuild” of its tech stack with #AI compatibility in mind. @Airbnb said it is layering AI across its experience to transform service, while Riyadh Air partnered with @IBM to make #Riyadh an AI-driven #airline. Continue reading the full article on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4d0uL4e

@CapitalOne has launched a standalone mobile application for its #travel platform, allowing #cardholders to book #travel, redeem #rewards and track trips in real time, including #airportlounge capacity and waitlist updates. The #app provides a travel-specific mobile channel separate from the company’s core #banking functionality. The existing web version of #CapitalOneTravel will continue to be available. Read more on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4rNZhlB

An #AIeval is a structured process used to systematically test and measure an #AI system's quality, performance and reliability, assessing whether it meets goals like accuracy, safety and usefulness. Generic evals and benchmarks are insufficient—custom evals are the only way to truly understand an AI's readiness for deployment. Read the full story on #PhocusWire now bit.ly/4sQb8QX

What impact will #artificialintelligence (AI) have on the #NewDistributionCapability (#NDC) standard first introduced by #IATA in 2012? Will #AI confine it to the history books? Will AI mean structural change or just become an optimization layer on top of existing services? What’s the right mix between direct and indirect business for airlines? These were some of the questions discussed during sessions at the #AirlineDistribution2026 conference last week. Below, we’ve shared some of the key insights, thoughts and concerns from airlines and technology specialists at the #UATP-hosted event. Continue reading the entire story on #PhocusWire bit.ly/4lzwX4Q

Spend management platform Ramp has acquired guest travel startup Juno, with plans to have it operate independently within Ramp while supporting its own travel offering capabilities, the companies announced Monday. Financial terms of the deal were undisclosed. Juno—developed by Devon Tivona and Sam Felsenthal, the founders of guest travel management app Pana—launched last year as a solution for coordinating, booking and managing guest travel. Over that time, it's announced attracting $6 million in funding and broadened its focus to tackle "complex travel" uses cases outside of guest travel, including meetings management capabilities. Now with Ramp, Tivona said Juno will have additional resources to continue its growth. Read the full article on #PhocusWire. bit.ly/3PmQ2eo