Navan has introduced Navan Edge, an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered personalized travel assistant.
The assistant is available to business travelers who don’t have access to Navan through their employers, allowing them to manage their travel plans and address disruptions.
“Navan Edge is for frequent business travelers at companies that do not have a managed travel program. These are the road warriors who spend hours researching their own travel and manually managing bookings, loyalty programs and disruptions,” a Navan spokesperson told PhocusWire.
“Long term, it’s also for frequent travelers within large enterprises who find their existing corporate tools too clunky and restrictive, leading them to book 'out of policy.' Navan Edge is designed to be the tool they’ll actually want to use.”
In addition to providing “hyper-personalized” recommendations based on preferences, loyalty program status and itinerary needs, the tool can also adjust bookings and reservations.
Once a traveler grants approval, the assistant will be able to rebook flights in the event of a cancellation, alert hotels about the delay and adjust dinner reservations. Human agents are available to assist as well, the company said.
As of Monday’s launch, Navan Edge is available on iOS in the U.S. and supports hotel bookings only. A Navan spokesperson confirmed flight and restaurant bookings are “expected to roll out soon.”
Ariel Cohen, CEO and co-founder of Navan, said the Navan Edge tool is built with the business traveler in mind.
“Travel is a top use case for LLMs. The people have spoken: They want to say the word and let the AI handle the rest. They want a solution that works for them and not the other way around,” Cohen said.
“But that conversational interface needs to operate on top of unbelievably complex infrastructure connecting hundreds of suppliers—global travel infrastructure that Navan spent a decade to perfect to an enterprise scale. Navan Edge is built to deliver what business travelers value most: the confidence that their trip will match their standards and specific needs, the ability to be productive on the go and the freedom to enjoy the journey.”
A16z Capital Management and Singapore-based Napean Trading & Investment recently acquired shares of Navan and disclosed investments of $465 million and $100.3 million, respectively. The business travel and expense platform is also facing investigations from plaintiff-side law firms regarding its initial public offering.