Booking CEO: Building the AI Travel Agent Isn't the Hard Part
Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel said at the Skift Global Forum in New York City that building an AI travel agent like Instinct wouldn't be that hard, but the real challenge is establishing trust. He argued there is more to travel than handling the transaction, and that travelers want to deal with real people when safeguarding credit card details and other sensitive information. Booking Holdings is still moving forward with AI initiatives, including its ad deal with OpenAI and integration on Google.
Impact and considerations
The Booking chief's public downplaying of AI-agent threats signals that incumbents see trust and payment security, not raw technical capability, as their core moat — a view that shapes how corporate travel buyers assess AI booking tools and supplier strategy.
Key points
- Booking Holdings CEO Glenn Fogel weighed the threat of AI travel agents onstage at the Skift Global Forum in New York City.
- Using Instinct as an example, he said building something like it wouldn't be that hard if all you had to do was handle the transaction.
- Fogel stressed there is a lot more to travel than just handling the transaction, and that establishing trust matters more.
- He argued travelers want to deal with real people when it comes to safeguarding credit card details and other sensitive information.
- Booking Holdings is moving forward with AI initiatives, including its ad deal with OpenAI and integration on Google.
Sources and time
- Primary source
- Skift
- Other sources
- 0
- First source publication
- 24 Sept 2026, 00:48
- Page published
- 24 Sept 2026, 00:53
- Last updated
- 24 Sept 2026, 00:48
- Original links
- Skift Feed：Booking CEO: Building the AI Travel Agent Isn't the Hard Part (opens in a new tab)Primary source · en · Published 24 Sept 2026, 00:48