Travel Tech Insider Gilad Berenstein and Cara Whitehill

The season finale is here! Episode 10 wraps up with some special guests to help us check in on the latest goings-on among all the hot topics we covered in Season 1. Cliffhangers abound...What's next with NDC, loyalty program changes, regulatory trends, and all things AI? Luxury and Zillennials, venture capital funding (or lack thereof?) and the future of destination marketing are all looking a little different from when we covered them just months ago.Thanks to Friends of the Pod Janette Rous...

This week we continue our deep dive into what we know so far about AI, and how it’s being used, being disruptive, being overestimated and perhaps underestimated across the travel ecosystem. In our last episode we spoke to two startup founders who have incorporated AI into their applications to get the perspective of the early-stage company and how AI is changing the landscape for these new players.Today we talk to two leaders from the other end of the spectrum, Marilyn Markham of AMEX Global ...

It’s been a little over a year now since ChatGPT burst on the scene like a cannonball into a pool, soaking us all. The initial waves have settled down, giving us a chance to see what kind of ideas and applications are making the best use of this fascinating technology. And while AI isn’t exactly new, the democratized access to it that ChatGPT introduced means virtually anyone can make use of large language models and generative AI tools without needing a PhD.This expanded access in turn is dr...

The way we travel has evolved pretty dramatically since the pandemic. The traditional “Dream/Plan/Book/Go/Share/Repeat” lifecycle has essentially been replatformed as a result of macro trends like the shift to remote work, multiple rounds of stimmie checks, a growing loneliness epidemic, and an acute appreciation for authenticity and sustainability in the travel brands we engage with. We have more time, more money, and more desire to see the world, and we want to do it on our terms.We’re also...

The loyalty program as we know it was pioneered by American Airlines over 30 years ago. A lot has changed since then. As travel has become commoditized in many areas, suppliers and retailers have become more innovative and creative about attracting, retaining, and rewarding customers. While customers have become savvier about maximizing and sometimes even gaming the system. The premium credit card companies have added their own layers of complexity. And of course, the pandemic accelerated man...

To paraphrase Lenin (Vladimir, not John), “there are decades where nothing happens, and then there is NDC”. For those of us who have worked in travel tech for more than a few years, it may feel like decades are suddenly happening in months, if not weeks.And it’s not just technology innovations like NDC and AI that are shaking things up. The pandemic gave many companies breathing room to experiment with new commercial models that give their businesses more solid footing to ride out unexpected ...