Rapid Fire with Jeff Kim of Yanolja

As we look forward to The Phocuswright Conference, PhocusWire is highlighting a number of conference speakers in a series of Q&As.

On November 20, Jeff Kim, CEO of Yanolja Cloud and chief strategy officer of parent company Yanolja Group, is participating in a "Changemakers" session focused on the company's ongoing strategies and areas of opportunity. 

Below, Kim discusses his artificial intelligence (AI), his views on the travel industry's use of technology and more.

Do you believe the travel industry is moving quickly enough to modernize its technology?

Global investment in travel technology is rising steadily. IMARC reports the market reached $10.7 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow to $18.6 billion by 2033, reflecting a compound annual growth rate of just over 6%.

Yet progress is uneven. Larger brands are accelerating quickly, while many smaller operators remain constrained by legacy systems, siloed data and the high costs of transformation. At Yanolja, we see both sides through our work with more than 1.3 million travel enterprises worldwide, from local boutiques to global chains. Our role is to bridge these gaps by connecting systems and data so enterprises operate more efficiently, maximize revenue and deliver seamless, personalized experiences for travelers.

We believe the industry is at a tipping point, and with the right collaboration, a fully connected travel journey from planning to booking to staying can soon become a reality.

What are you working on currently that excites you most?

I am most excited about our mission to make travel 10x easier through technology innovation. What excites me most is seeing this come to life in real ways with the latest technology development. Hotels are streamlining daily operations with our cloud hospitality tools, sales channels are capturing more value through AI-powered data solutions and travelers are already experiencing more seamless and personalized travel experiences. Watching these solutions deliver tangible impact shows what the future of travel can look like when innovation is applied thoughtfully and at scale.

What are the greatest challenges you currently face at Yanolja?

One of the biggest challenges across the industry is fragmentation. Large players like airlines and global hotel chains are moving quickly with AI and digital investments, but many others still rely on outdated systems that cannot easily connect or share data. As McKinsey has noted, fragmentation and siloed systems make it difficult to scale AI effectively because disconnected data prevents the feedback loops that drive real performance gains. The result is a widening gap, where some companies are racing ahead with innovation while others struggle to keep pace.

Another important challenge is adoption on the ground. Owners may understand the value of AI, but transformation only works when frontline staff feel comfortable and confident using new tools. In hospitality, that means housekeepers, front desk agents and operators need to see how technology can make their jobs easier, not harder.

At Yanolja, we see this as an opportunity. Through our cloud hospitality solutions and AI-powered data solutions, we work closely with our travel enterprise partners to show how AI can save time, improve pricing decisions and enhance the traveler experience. Bringing tangible benefits for enterprises to maximize their profit and enhance customer satisfaction is rewarding.

How are you personally using AI in your day-to-day work? How do you wish you could use AI in the future?

I use AI every day, often in ways I hardly notice. Whether it is seeing AI-generated summaries when I search for hotel reviews, getting insights directly in AI-powered recommendations or using translation and writing tools to work across languages and markets, AI has become part of my routine. These tools save time and let me focus on higher-value work.

At Yanolja, we are taking those same everyday efficiencies and applying them at scale to create a more connected traveler experience. As one of the first companies in Korea’s travel industry to adopt OpenAI’s ChatGPT Enterprise and GPT-5, we are embedding these capabilities into our Data Enablement Platform and domain-specific AI stack. This enables travel enterprises to connect fragmented systems and data, forecast demand more accurately, optimize pricing dynamically and localize content more effectively. For travelers, it means each stage of the journey from planning to booking to staying feels smarter, easier, and more personalized.

What excites me is seeing how the efficiencies I experience personally with AI can be scaled through enterprise innovation to connect the entire travel ecosystem.

Who are you most looking forward to hearing speak at the conference and why?

I am looking forward to hearing from peers across the industry who are rethinking how technology can make travel smarter, more connected, and more personalized.

The Phocuswright Conference is a valuable platform to share ideas, challenge assumptions and explore how innovation can benefit both enterprises and travelers. It brings together senior leaders from across the global travel ecosystem, creating a unique opportunity to exchange perspectives. For me, it is also an opportunity to connect with potential partners, share how Yanolja is helping enterprises improve efficiency and deliver more connected and personalized experiences and engage in conversations that often turn into meaningful collaborations that help move the entire industry forward together.