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It’s time for our weekly roundup of the top travel stories:
- Improving travel planning with AI. Belgium-based startup Wetime is making its online travel planning platform better by adding AI features. They are working together with Packet Ship, a software provider for hotels. The Teaching Hotel in Maastricht will be the first to use this new technology, and then it will be used across the Netherlands with VodafoneZiggo. Wetime’s special AI focuses on information about places, history, and tourism. It makes each trip personalized to what the person likes and can afford. The platform is free for both people and hotels, aiming to change how people plan their trips to cities by giving them plans that are made just for them.
- Hospitality expands through payment solution. HotelRunner, a hospitality tech provider, has acquired PayPad, a cloud-based sales system for hotels. This is the entry for HotelRunner into offering a system for selling and taking payments in-person at hotels, which is a big step to grow their business. Earlier, HotelRunner got $6.5 million from investors to help them grow and invest in new technology. This move is an important part of their plan to be a big name in the travel industry and make the travel system more connected online.
- Gathering everyone: groups, meetings and events. HotelPlanner, a hotel booking platform focused on group travel and meetings, has acquired Eventsquid, a platform specializing in event registration. Eventsquid helps with organizing events by making things like registration, making websites and apps, and communicating with attendees automatic. The acquisition aims to enhancemake the experience better for customers and give event planners and attendees more advanced technology solutions, aligning with the evolving needs in event management.
- Reshaping in-flight shopping. Gategroup and Immfly Group are merging their platforms into a cutting-edge solution for onboard retail technology. Immfly will be working with Gategroup to help with tech things like crew applications, payment solutions, and in-seat ordering. By combining their knowledge and skills, they will be able to offer airlines a seamless inflight connectivity experience covering pre-flight and in-seat services. This partnership combines their strengths in retail and digital technology to improve inflight retail and enhance the overall travel experience.
- 2035: the year of the hydrogen-powered plane. Airbus is working together with ZeroAvia to show that flying with hydrogen and electricity is really possible. ZeroAvia focuses on using hydrogen to power planes, and sees this as strong validation. Airbus will invest and aid in hydrogen power system certification, fuel storage, and infrastructure development. ZeroAvia hopes to develop an aircraft with nine to nineteen seats by 2025, and one with forty or more seats two years later. This aligns with Airbus’ goal of making a hydrogen-powered plane under the ZEROe program by 2035.