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Saturday 26 September

1 updates
OTA / TMC
Skift FeedUnited States / Seattle

Expedia Cuts 58 Roles in Seattle

Expedia is cutting 58 roles in Seattle, according to a Washington WARN notice filed this week, with the layoffs set to take place between November 21 and December 1. The notice lists several senior roles, including an SVP position Skift previously reported in August, and of 31 total technical positions, 18 are in data science and machine learning. In a statement, Expedia characterized the cuts as streamlining efforts mainly related to finance, saying its Global Finance team is making changes mostly to simplify its org structure, with some employees moving to new roles or locations and some roles being eliminated.

Friday 25 September

8 updates
OTA / TMC
Skift Feed全球 / United States

Chenault on Travel Membership and AI-Driven Integration

At Skift Global Forum, Kenneth Chenault, Chairman & Managing Director of General Catalyst, shared lessons from transforming the Amex Platinum card: build on experiences across the full hospitality journey and segment by services and needs. Amex targeted customers in their late 20s and early 30s, and within two years roughly 35% of new Platinum customers were 35 or under. He stressed that strong brands balance rational and emotional values. Long Lake, backed by General Catalyst, used a proprietary AI platform called Nexus to lift revenue growth from 5% to 15-20%; its first acquisition took six months to integrate, while the fifth took three weeks. That model is now being tested at scale with…

OTA / TMC
Skift Feed全球

Airbnb CEO: Rebuilding as an AI-Native Company

At the Skift Global Forum, Airbnb co-founder and CEO Brian Chesky said the company chose to rebuild around AI rather than layer it onto the existing business. He called AI an existential risk to Airbnb and also its growth engine, accelerating growth and share gains from OTAs and hotels. Airbnb shipped over 600 features this year, nearly twice last year's pace, and nearly half of customer service tickets are now handled by AI in 50 languages. Chesky also said Airbnb will launch its own agent and will eventually welcome chain hotels including Marriott and Hilton.

OTA / TMC
Skift FeedUnited States

Capital One Travel Positions as a Travel Platform; Over 70% of Customers Seek Live Experiences

In a Skift Global Forum decision brief, Capital One Travel SVP Sarah Moore said Capital One is positioning itself as a travel platform, not just a credit card company. She said launching Capital One Travel in 2021, later than many competitors, allowed it to study the market, understand modern travelers and build technology-first. As a bank, Capital One can use customer information and transaction data for contextual personalization. Moore said more than 70% of Capital One customers look at some kind of event or live experience when they travel, citing partnerships with MLB, touring artists and José Andrés. She also said a dedicated travel app launched in the past year has been heavily utili…

OTA / TMC
Business Travel News全球 / North America

SkyLink Upgrades AI Servicing Capabilities with Amadeus

AI corporate travel assistant SkyLink has completed a roughly 18-month substantial upgrade, gaining resources from its Amadeus acquisition to scale globally. The upgrade enables real-time interruption and multi-instruction handling within conversations, adds more agentic capabilities such as exchanges, rebooking and multi-month trips, and includes robust analytics providing an auditable decision trail. Founded in 2021, SkyLink is an LLM-based tool integrated with enterprise chat channels including Microsoft Teams and Slack, with publicly identified clients McKinsey & Company and Sony, and sees TMC productivity as a growth area.

OTA / TMC
Business Travel NewsAsia / North America / New Zealand / Europe / Australia / United Kingdom / Africa

Travelogix and Kudos Partner on Integrated Tech Offering

Travel data specialist Travelogix has partnered with Brisbane, Australia-based Kudos Travel Technology, with the two working as preferred technology partners to offer a more connected technology ecosystem. Current and prospective customers of both companies gain access to their respective platforms, and mutual customers can move seamlessly between platforms via new single sign-on capabilities tested with joint customer Sanford Travel, an Australia-based TMC. TMCs do not need to be customers of both providers to access shared capabilities, though doing so incurs an additional cost. The agreement initially focuses on preferred territories across the UK, Europe, Africa and Asia, while establis…

OTA / TMC
JTB Group NewsroomHawaii / Japan / United States

JTB, JCB and JAL Turn Student Ideas into a Hawaii Graduation Travel Product

JTB announced on September 25, 2026 that it has commercialized the winning student team's concept from the 2025 Hawaii Idea Contest together with JCB and Japan Airlines (JAL), launching the new product Gakutabi Hawaii under the Look JTB MySTYLE Gakutabi line. The product is a 4-night/6-day trip departing March 8 and March 9, 2027, featuring a Diamond Head hike and cleanup activity plus a Hawaii Graduation Party for graduating students, with idol group CANDY TUNE appearing as a special guest. The three companies will also hold a joint stage event at Tourism EXPO Japan 2026 at Tokyo Big Sight on September 26, 2026.

OTA / TMC
Agoda NewsroomAsia / India / Indonesia / Taiwan / Thailand / South Korea

Agoda maps six Asian music-festival destinations

Agoda released a list of six Asian music-festival destinations: Mumbai, Taipei, Busan, Ko Pha Ngan, Uluwatu in Bali and Chonburi. Agoda said global dance events are expanding rapidly across Asia and that superfans will cross borders for a weekend set, a trend in which the line-up determines the destination. Andrew Smith, Senior Vice President, Supply at Agoda, said the line-up has become the destination, and Agoda is also partnering with Eurovision Asia as its Official Travel Partner.

OTA / TMC
Skift Feed全球

Expedia CEO: Joining Meta's Muse, AEO Becomes Fastest-Growing Channel

Expedia Group CEO Ariane Gorin said at Skift Global Forum that Expedia will be on Meta's Muse AI agent, with the partnership announced the day before she spoke. She described a case-by-case, experimental approach to emerging agent platforms, with teams engaging Google, OpenAI, Anthropic and Meta. Gorin said AEO (answer engine optimization) is now Expedia's fastest-growing channel and that paid advertising in AI environments is starting to evolve. Expedia reversed course from a single end-to-end agent to modular AI agents reused across brands, while strengthening direct channels through bundling, servicing and loyalty.

Thursday 24 September

16 updates
OTA / TMC
BCD Travel RSS全球

BCD Travel Launches Tripsource Platform to Enhance Traveler Experience with Guided Engagement

BCD Travel has launched Tripsource, a platform designed to improve the end-to-end business traveler experience by delivering real-time, contextual guidance and support. The platform combines travel content from aggregators and GDS, enabling booking, trip management, policy application, and risk insights. BCD Travel reports a 90% satisfaction rate with Tripsource. Emphasizing an open ecosystem, the platform can integrate with other booking tools and partners, helping travel managers improve program compliance and performance.

OTA / TMC
Web in TravelIndia / Taiwan / Singapore / Japan / Thailand / Hong Kong / Malaysia

Trip.Biz launches Agent ONE; India travel market grows just 1% in 2025

Trip.Biz, Trip.com Group's business-travel arm, unveiled its Agent ONE AI suite at the Transform 2026 summit in Singapore, comprising planning, booking, approval and insight agents, claiming it cuts average booking time from about 45 minutes to 2 minutes and approval waits from over an hour to under 3 seconds. Meanwhile, a Phocuswright report shows India's travel market grew just 1% to $41.7 billion in 2025, with a 13% rebound to $47.2 billion expected in 2026. Cloudbeds and Klook launched a two-way distribution integration, and WTTC, JATA and Tourism EXPO Japan signed an MOU.

OTA / TMC
Skift FeedUnited States

Airbnb CEO Chesky Commits to Launching an AI Agent in 2027

According to Skift, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky said at Skift Global Forum that the company will launch its own AI agent in 2027, adding that the new interface would be 'much richer than a chatbot.' Chesky has previously described Airbnb's future as an 'agentic app' and an eventual AI concierge. On the August earnings call, he said that within roughly 12 to 18 months travelers would be able to bring a broad request, such as planning a family trip to Europe, and have the platform help assemble the trip. Just two weeks before the forum, he told Goldman Sachs the company was still piloting richer AI interfaces.

OTA / TMC
TravelDaily ChinaChina / Hangzhou

Fliggy and Alibaba Cloud Bailian Launch Industry's First Travel AI Hackathon

At the 2026 Hangzhou Yunqi Conference, Fliggy and Alibaba Cloud Bailian announced the industry's first travel AI hackathon, open to all individual developers, with outstanding works and developers receiving token subsidies, expert coaching and commercial ecosystem resources. The two-month event has preset topics including hotel staycations, destination exploration, AI private guides and inbound-travel assistants, plus an open track. It is built on Fliggy's AI open platform and flyai skill, giving developers access to price and inventory data across flights, hotels, tickets, car services and destination activities, with Alibaba Cloud Bailian providing models and workflows.

OTA / TMC
China Tourism NewsChina / Asia-Pacific / Europe / Americas

Three OTA Half-Year Reports: Growth Logic Shifts as Ctrip Bets on International, Tongcheng Acquires…

In the first half of this year, listed Chinese OTAs continued to grow overall, but the growth logic is changing. Ctrip's net revenue was RMB 31.871 billion, up 11.15% year on year, while net profit attributable to shareholders fell to RMB 4.1 million due to an antitrust penalty. Tongcheng Travel's revenue was RMB 9.993 billion, up 10.5%, with net profit of RMB 1.411 billion, up 7.67%. Tuniu's net revenue was about RMB 272 million, up 7.58%, but profitability came under pressure. Ctrip is betting on international business, with inbound tourism orders up 95% year on year in H1 and international platform revenue growth exceeding 50% in Q2. Tongcheng Travel expanded into hotel management and hi…

OTA / TMC
China Tourism NewsChina / Fiji

Tourism Fiji Launches Four Chinese-Language Travel Guides

Tourism Fiji has launched four Chinese-language travel guides — for family holidays, couples, solo travellers and groups — now available on its Chinese official website. Designed around the main travel scenarios of Chinese visitors, they cover accommodation-type comparisons, regional features, experience recommendations and pre-trip planning, and can be used for industry partner training and client communication as well as by independent travellers. The group guide focuses on corporate incentive travel and wedding celebrations. Tourism Fiji data show 20,500 Chinese visitors from January to August this year, up 5.25% year on year.

OTA / TMC
China Tourism NewsYunnan Province / Beijing / Huairou District / Shangri-La City

Two Guides' Preparations for the Holiday Season

China Tourism News interviews two guides. Inbound guide Hu Xiaofan is hosting 16 Italian tourists on a 16-day Yunnan tour, spending Mid-Autumn in Shangri-La; she plans to introduce the festival starting with mooncakes, having learned dietary restrictions and some Italian. Domestic guide Liu Yongkai is preparing a 30-person senior group for a National Day trip to Baiqquan Mountain in Huairou, Beijing, limiting hiking to under two hours and about four kilometers round trip, and packing motion-sickness medicine, trekking poles and hot water.

OTA / TMC
Pinchain TourismChina / Hangzhou / Zhejiang

Tongcheng's HopeGoo Distributes Inbound-Travel Consumption Vouchers

On September 23, Tongcheng Travel's international platform HopeGoo launched the 2026 "Hi Zhejiang" Hangzhou inbound-travel consumption vouchers, its first time distributing a government-led inbound-travel voucher program. Foreign and Hong Kong/Macau/Taiwan users can claim hotel and attraction ticket vouchers via the HopeGoo app: 20% off hotel bookings over RMB 210, capped at RMB 210 off, and 20% off attraction tickets, capped at RMB 60 off. Vouchers are valid for seven days from claim, with one per category per user. The first batch runs from September 23 to December 25, 2026, for stays and visits through December 31, 2026.

OTA / TMC
JTB Group NewsroomJapan / Malaysia

JTB and Tourism Malaysia Sign MOC to Promote Travel

JTB and Tourism Malaysia signed a memorandum of cooperation (MOC) to jointly stimulate and expand Japanese outbound travel to Malaysia under the Visit Malaysia 2026-2027 campaign. The cooperation runs from September 2026 to December 2027 and focuses on four pillars: media promotion, familiarization trips for JTB sales staff, digital content and social media outreach, and growth of group travel including MICE and educational trips. The two sides also plan measures such as two-way charter flights, with 2027 marking the 70th anniversary of Japan-Malaysia diplomatic relations.

OTA / TMC
Pinchain TourismChina / Abu Dhabi / United Arab Emirates

Abu Dhabi China Travel Trade Summit Concludes with 108 Delegates

The 2026 Abu Dhabi China Travel Trade Summit, hosted by the Department of Culture and Tourism – Abu Dhabi (DCT Abu Dhabi), brought 108 Chinese travel industry executives and senior managers to Abu Dhabi, spanning leisure travel and MICE, including representatives from Ctrip, Tongcheng, Tuniu, Zhongxin Travel, Zhuohui Travel and Shenzhen China International Travel Service. Delegates met with 63 Abu Dhabi hotels, attractions, cultural institutions and ground handlers, generating more than 1,500 one-on-one business meetings over two days. Chinese citizens currently enjoy visa-free entry to Abu Dhabi; direct routes jointly operated by Etihad Airways and China Eastern Airlines cover multiple cor…

OTA / TMC
Pinchain TourismChina / Chengdu / Hangzhou

Meituan Launches Jibai Flagship Edition, Integrates with Hotel PMS

On September 23, Meituan announced an upgrade to its hotel AI product Jibai with the launch of a flagship edition targeting upscale and chain hotels, offering full-chain AI support spanning market insight, operational diagnosis and performance review. With merchant authorization, the flagship edition can connect to hotel PMS and other local operating systems to consolidate data scattered across channels. Meituan said the flagship edition has been co-built with a first batch of upscale and chain hotels, achieving 98% diagnostic accuracy and a 20% gain in full-chain management efficiency; merchants deeply using Jibai saw RevPAR rise an average of 11%.

OTA / TMC
Pinchain TourismChina / Hangzhou

Fliggy and Alibaba Cloud Bailian Launch Travel AI Hackathon

At the 2026 Hangzhou Yunqi Conference, Fliggy and Alibaba Cloud Bailian announced the launch of a travel AI hackathon, open to all individual developers, with outstanding works and developers receiving token subsidies, expert coaching and commercial ecosystem resources. The two-month event has preset topics including hotel staycations, destination exploration, AI private guides and inbound-travel assistants, plus an open track. It is built on Fliggy's AI open platform and flyai skill, giving developers access to price and inventory data across flights, hotels, tickets, car services and destination activities, with Alibaba Cloud Bailian providing models and workflows.

OTA / TMC
China Tourism NewsChina / Europe

Viking Cruises Marks 10 Years in China, Serving Over 100,000

Viking Cruises marks its tenth year in China in 2026, having served more than 100,000 Chinese travellers over the decade, with highly educated silver-haired customers as its core segment. Viking entered China in 2016 with Chinese-language European river cruises; in 2026 its first Chinese-language European ocean cruise launched, making Viking the only cruise brand globally offering both Chinese-language European river and ocean cruises. In 2023 Viking became the first cruise company to announce resumption of China outbound European river cruise operations. Its repurchase rate in China is nearly 20% in recent years. Data show China's silver economy was about RMB 7 trillion in 2025, roughly 6%…

OTA / TMC
China Tourism NewsChina

Travel Agencies Enter Final Sprint Before Mid-Autumn and National Day Holidays

China Tourism News reports that travel agencies have entered a final sprint before the Mid-Autumn and National Day holidays. Companies including Spring Tour, CTS Travel, Tuniu and Zhongxin Travel are focusing on pre-trip preparation, short-haul bookings, safety and contingency plans. A CTS Travel consultant handles over 20 tourists daily, managing rescheduling and tight inventory. Spring Group President Wang Wei describes a phased workflow, while Tuniu schedules livestreams and order reviews at 20-30, 7-15 and 3-5 days before the holiday. Agencies have set up holiday working groups and emergency plans.

OTA / TMC
Hospitality TechnologyUnited States

Scooter's Coffee Integrates Digital Ordering with Olo Platform

Scooter's Coffee has migrated its digital ordering ecosystem onto Olo, the restaurant digital commerce platform. Olo Ordering now powers the backend of the Scooter's Coffee mobile app, while Olo Rails enables the chain's first third-party delivery marketplace channel. The rollout was completed in under 90 days across 900+ locations, covering POS routing configuration, a customizable menu with modifier management, and a seamless transition for existing mobile app users without operational downtime. The brand operates around 900 locations across 32 U.S. states.

OTA / TMC
Skift Feed全球

Booking Holdings Builds Long-Term Advantage With Five Parallel AI Bets

Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel said at Skift Global Forum that the company is running five simultaneous AI bets in a venture-capital style, including consumer agents for Priceline, Agoda and Booking.com plus two native AI startups. He said the technology itself is becoming easy to build, so the real advantage lies in what AI alone cannot provide. Fogel said AI referral traffic currently drives fewer than 1% of room nights at Booking.com, though he expects commerce through AI agents to grow. He also said Airbnb's move into hotels was inevitable and could push home-rental hosts who rely on a single platform to seek additional demand sources.