Travel Tech Insider

Gilad Berenstein and Cara Whitehill
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Travel Tech Insider is a podcast for those building the future of travel.  Hosted by operators and investors, it’s where the smartest minds in the space go to hear bold takes, nuanced ideas, and practical insights from the people doing the work. If you’re tired of press release PR and trade-show buzzwords, this is your seat at the table.Co-hosted by industry veterans and investors Gilad Berenstein and Cara Whitehill, they are joined by guest experts from all corners of the travel & hospitality tech industry.If you would like to contribute to the conversation please reach out! 

  1. -2 ДН.

    Agentic AI (Part 2): The Emerging AI Tech Stack

    Generative AI is not only impacting how travel is bought and sold as we heard in Part 1 of our AI Effect series, it’s also impacting how companies are building and delivering the travel services that are bought and sold. Companies used to stockpile servers, engineers and access to bandwidth, all of which required considerable capital. In this new AI era, anyone can use Replit or Lovable to spin up their own travel app in a matter of hours. Companies no longer need teams of expensive engineers to code up a new application — the just need a Cursor subscription and a few developers with some free time to vibe code. Legacy infrastructure is getting deprecated in favor of AI-based solutions that didn’t exist a few months ago. So what does the enterprise tech stack look in this era of AI? Is it proving to be more cost-effective than the legacy platforms our industry was built on? Is it unlocking opportunity for startups with fresh ideas to take share from incumbents? Or is it enabling the incumbents to finally catch up to startups in terms of speed of innovation? Or is it a combination (or collaboration) of both? Follows Gilad Berenstein – host Cara Whitehill - host Josh Dow — guest SJ Sawhney — guest Go Deeper From Prompts To Products: The Business Of No-Code AI Is Booming - Forbes [$]McKinsey Technology Trends Outlook 2025 - McKinsey & CompanyThis Week in Lessons from (Technical) Founders - Gilad BerensteinBuilding the Foundation for Agentic AI - Bain & CompanyAgentic AI in the enterprise: An evolution, not a revolution - Red Hat Blog

    58 мин.

  2. 4 НОЯБ.

    The AI Effect (Part 1): The Future of Travel Distribution

    Generative AI has upended just about every part of the travel lifecycle for both buyers and sellers of travel services. From the consumer perspective, the resources available to inspire, research, plan, book and share your favorite trips have simultaneously expanded the possibilities for consideration and curated that consideration set to a handful of suggestions — all in a matter of seconds. From the perspective of those selling travel services, that path to reach your buyers has become exponentially more complicated. The old reliable model of online search (primarily through Google) has a half life that is accelerating faster than anyone could have predicted. The promise of agentic AI in the hands of consumers may feel more like a curse to travel suppliers who haven’t yet figured out how to be relevant to the constantly evolving LLMs. At the same time, traditional SEO- and SEM-based acquisition channels, which have been economically dominated by the OTAs for a generation, are now being replaced by this new algorithmic approach of the proliferating LLMs, providing an opening for direct booking channels that could level the playing field. Likewise, the fine-tuning that AI tools provide to brands for optimizing pricing, offers and channels could be an opportunity…or a race to the bottom. We’re still in Act I of this AI era, and we’ll talk to a couple experts for their take on where we are and where we are headed.   Follows Gilad Berenstein – host Cara Whitehill - host Layton Han — guest Christian Watts — guest   Go Deeper Remapping Travel with Agentic AI - McKinsey & CompanyAltimeter Capital Partner Says AI Will Transform Travel Search: ‘It’s Already Happening’ - Skift [$]How hotels should be thinking about their visibility on AI platforms - PhocusWireForget the funnel. Welcome to AI: The new distribution channel - CoStarThe Great Tech Reset: Agentic AI and the Coming Rebalance of Power in Hospitality - Hotel Online

    49 мин.

  3. 28 ОКТ.

    Social Commerce: Dead or Alive?

    With all the debate over agentic AI and its impact on the traditional search ecosystem, we seem to have forgotten all about that other massive acquisition channel — social commerce. TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Reddit, Twitter, and other popular commuity sites around the globe all continue to garner a significant share of top-of-funnel attention and mid-funnel intent. This is acutely true for the Gen Z and younger millennial cohorts when it comes to travel planning and even more so for Gen Alphas who may not be buying travel yet but who are heavily relying on social for their retail commerce purchases. What we haven’t yet seen is a clear winner, a household name emerge when it comes to translating that attention to revenue. Does that mean there is no real winner here, or do we just lack a good attribution model that connects the dots from social to booking? Social also seems to be leveling the playing feel between brands and individuals. The creator economy is massive in categories like fashion and beauty — but how does it play out for big ticket, highly considered purchases like travel? And as agentic AI takes over from traditional search, will that help or hurt social commerce as a channel for discovery, planning and potentially booking? Are social and agentic AI parallel channels that will coexist to serve complementary use cases, or are they on a commercial collision course? Follows Gilad Berenstein – host Cara Whitehill - host Hannah Bennett — guest Abby Dichter — guest   Go Deeper State of the Consumer 2025: When disruption becomes permanent - McKinsey & CompanyHow Social Media Is Shaping Travel Planning and Booking - SkiftUnder the influence: Social media's role in trip planning - PhocusWrightU.S. Traveler Trends 2025: More Social Media and AI, a Rebound for Online Travel Agencies - SkiftIs your brand ready for the $3 trillion social commerce marketplace? - PWC

    51 мин.

  4. 21 ОКТ.

    Vacation Rentals in Flux

    The vacation rental industry has transformed from a scrappy alternative to hotels into a global powerhouse—but is the model starting to strain under its own weight? In this episode, we explore how the ecosystem is evolving, and where fault lines are beginning to show. Can tech keep pace with rising guest expectations? Will hosts, managers, and platforms ever find equilibrium in their tug-of-war over economics, control, and trust? And what happens when regulators and communities push back against the very growth that made vacation rentals mainstream? We look at the opportunities and tensions shaping the next phase of this category—where innovation collides with customer demands, and where the future may depend less on scale and more on who can truly deliver a consistent, high-quality experience. Follows Gilad Berenstein – host Cara Whitehill - host Annie Sloan — guest Josh Kristoff — guest   Go Deeper Airbnb Lets You Add a Private Chef to Your Rental. Your Host Might Not Like It. - Wall Street Journal [$]**How much opportunity is there for STR ancillaries? Experts weigh in - PhocusWire**U.S. 2025 Mid-Year Short-Term Rental Outlook Report - AirDNAShort-Term Rental Headwinds: U.S. Supply Growth Is Slowing - SkiftPerplexity Travel for Vacation Rentals: How AI Is Powering Trip Search - RentalScaleUp

    1 ч. 2 мин.

  5. 29 ИЮЛ.

    SALON: The New Era of Investing - Lessons Learned for Investors

    In this emerging AI era, what’s different this time when it comes to tech investing? We’ve seen major disruptions before, both business model (eg, internet > mobile > social > AI) and cultural/structural/economic (eg, ZIRP, gig workers, Covid, remote working, cloud computing). Prior eras followed a similar playbook: irrational exuberance leading to the trough of despair, followed by the emergence of a handful of market leaders with escape velocity and long tail of minor players, all setting into a level of market maturity that keeps things in balance. Will the AI era follow same? Or does the velocity of tech evolution and democratization of access to these sophisticated technologies mean something different? What have investors learned from these past cycles that informs how they select investments and support their portfolio companies? What past mistakes have they made that they are correcting for now, and how? We unpack all these topics with another Salon episode featuring three leading travel tech investors to share their battle scars and assessment of this new climate of investing. Follows Gilad Berenstein – host Cara Whitehill - host Gaurav Tuli - guest Chris Hemmeter - guest Mia Morisset - guest Go Deeper When Not to Take VC Advice - SiftedThe great SaaS obituary: why reports of its death are greatly exaggerated - MediumThe 3-Person Unicorn Startup - NfXHow AI is disrupting the VC and startup ecosystem - Fast CompanyHow AI is fundamentally changing the operational needs of startups - World Economic ForumBook Recommendation: Quit: The Power of Knowing When to Walk Away, Annie Duke

    1 ч. 1 мин.
  6. SALON: The State of VC in Travel: APAC Edition

    15 АПР.

    SALON: The State of VC in Travel: APAC Edition

    In our first two seasons we took a deep dive into the venture investing scenes in both the US and European markets, comparing and contrasting the startup trends, approaches to risk, and styles of investing that are taking hold. Now we shift our focus east, and take a look at the state of the APAC VC ecosystem. Given the multitude of different countries, cultures, and currencies the region encompasses, it has a far more diverse customer base to tap into than the US or EU. How does that impact the type of startups that grow up and find success in that region? How easily (or not) can those startups scale beyond APAC? For investors, what do they look for in the startups they back across the region, and are there nuances within each corner of APAC itself? And given the current tumultuous geopolitical environment, is it more of a challenge or an opportunity for starups and investors across the region? So for this mid-season break episode, we are tapping into some of the investors on the front lines across Asia salon-style, to see what we can learn from our friends there. Follows: Gilad Berenstein - host Cara Whitehill - host Nick Cocks - Founder & Director, Velocity Ventures Murli Ravi - Co-founder, Tin Men Capital Mizuho Hiraguri - Corporate Development for Recruit Co Go Deeper: Trump, tariffs and travel: How will the turbulence play out in Asia? - Web In TravelSoutheast Asia’s Travel Tech Sector at Pivotal Moment for Value Creation - PhocusWireAsia's Travel Surge Drives Moderate Global Growth - Skift24-fold increase in Japanese corporate venture capital in the past decade - Global Corporate VenturingUnpacking Asia’s corporate investment trends in travel - TNMT

    56 мин.
  7. Season Finale | What’s on Tap for 2025

    28 ЯНВ.

    Season Finale | What’s on Tap for 2025

    Wrapping up season two of the Travel Tech Insider podcast, we turn the tables on our favorite trade media voices to hear what they’re keeping an eye on for 2025. What are they most excited to cover? What under-the-radar trends do they think will have an outsized impact on the ways we plan, shop, book and experience travel? And how do they go about their day-to-day jobs in the media world, identifying stories and cultivating their sources to find their unique angles and insights?  We’re joined by four of the leading thinkers, writers and question-askers in the industry to learn what they see on the horizon for 2025 and beyond.  Follows Gilad Berenstein — host Cara Whitehill — host Jay Boehmer — guest Michael Coletta — guest Sarah Kopit — guest Siew Hoon Yeoh — guest  Go Deeper Skift Megatrends 2025 - SkiftTravel Forward: Data, Insights and Trends for 2025 - PhocusWright2025 What to Watch - Business Travel NewsYour Guide to 2025 – Problems to be fixed and trends no one is talking about yet - WIT / Web in Travel12 technology and CX trends that can enhance airline and airport operations in 2025 - Future Travel Experience

    1 ч. 14 мин.

  8. 24.12.2024

    M&A Part 2: The Exit | Founders Perspectives

    In part 1 of our exploration of M&A trends in the travel sector, we talked to the bankers and advisors who have a front row seat to the circus that is the M&A process. Given this is their job day-in and day-out, they have a deep understanding of the steps involved in buying or selling a business, can anticipate the gotcha’s and stumbling blocks, and are primed to help their customers avoid pitfalls that can unexpectedly snag a deal. Now we turn to the other side of the table and talk to the founders for their perspective on the exit. Since most founders will only experience an M&A event once or twice in a career, there is considerable information asymetry in the process. Exits can also take many different forms, depending on who’s buying, whether the startup is bootstrapped or venture-backed, and what’s actually being sold. We talked to three travel startup founders who have gone through this process (a couple of whom have done it multiple times), to hear what their experiences were like, lessons learned, what they might have done differently, and what their exits enabled them to go on to do next. Because after all, an exit is just an entrance to somewhere else. Follows Gilad Berenstein — host Cara Whitehill — host Sarah Dusek — guest Sam Shank — guest Jeroen Van Velzen — guest Go Deeper Thinking Bigger - Sarah DusekThe Art Of The Founder Exit - ForbesWhy Founders Are Afraid to Talk About Exit Strategies - Harvard Business ReviewWhat Founders Need to Know Before Selling Their Startup - Harvard Business ReviewEuropean founders are thinking more creatively about exits. Here are some of the options - SiftedExit strategies: When to sell and not to sell - Silicon Valley Bank

    1 ч. 15 мин.
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Travel Tech Insider is a podcast for those building the future of travel.  Hosted by operators and investors, it’s where the smartest minds in the space go to hear bold takes, nuanced ideas, and practical insights from the people doing the work. If you’re tired of press release PR and trade-show buzzwords, this is your seat at the table.Co-hosted by industry veterans and investors Gilad Berenstein and Cara Whitehill, they are joined by guest experts from all corners of the travel & hospitality tech industry.If you would like to contribute to the conversation please reach out! 

Информация

  • Автор
    Gilad Berenstein and Cara Whitehill
  • Годы выхода
    2023 - 2025
  • Выпуски
    27
  • Ограничения
    Без ненормативной лексики
  • Авторские права
    © 2025 Travel Tech Insider
  • Сайт подкаста
    Travel Tech Insider

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