Eight travel tech startups have been selected as the winners of the 2026 Global Startup Pitch.
The winning companies were among seventeen that presented their pitches live on the Startup Stage at Phocuswright Europe in Barcelona this week.
The competition, now in its fifth year, is jointly produced by WiT, Phocuswright and PhocusWire and aims to uncover the top early-stage travel companies across North America, Europe, Asia Pacific and emerging markets. As in previous years, startups could also compete in a Wildcards category, designed to identify innovative ideas targeting global, next-generation challenges.
Companies competed in two categories:
Seedup: Under three years old and have raised no more than US$5 million
Scaleup: Three to eight years old and have raised no more than US$10 million
Seedups competed against Seedups and Scaleups against Scaleups within each region. A panel of judges representing the travel industry’s investment and innovation community chose the winning pitches.
The Global Startup Pitch Competition is supported by American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT), a Phocuswright Strategic Partner of Innovation.
The 2026 global startup pitch winners
Asia Pacific
Emerging Markets
Europe
North America
Wildcards
The winning companies will travel to Singapore for showcase presentations at WiT Singapore, taking place from Sept. 30–Oct. 2. SPUN, the recipient of the AirAsia MOVE award, will receive a return flight from anywhere in Asia to the event.
The audience at WiT Singapore will vote on their favorite Seedup and Scaleup. The People's Choice winners will then be showcased at The Phocuswright Conference, Nov. 17–19 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
Global Startup Pitch reflects a commitment by Phocuswright, WiT and PhocusWire to cultivate innovation in travel, tourism and hospitality. Events and programs include WiT Bootcamps, Phocuswright's Startup Program, PhocusWire's Hot 25 Travel Startups and Phocuswright's Launch pitch competition.