Here's our roundup of the people, product and partner news from the global travel industry this week.
* This roundup has been created with the help of ChatGPT.
Digitrips recruits VP of international growth
Travel technology provider Digitrips Group has appointed Vicki Wickens as vice president of international growth to lead its ambitious European expansion.
With more than 20 years experience in the travel industry and senior roles at Expedia, Sabre and Gimmonix, Wickens brings strong commercial and partnership expertise. Digitrips aims to scale its modular travel solutions—already successful in Benelux and Italy—across key European markets. The company, handling more than five million bookings since inception, offers a portfolio including 1.2 million hotels and more than 500 airlines.
New head of travel for Capital One
Capital One has appointed Sarah Kaplan Moore as head of its expanding travel business.
With more than 15 years of industry experience, Moore brings a track record from roles at Rocket Travel, Vivid Seats and Expedia. Since launching its Capital One Travel platform in 2021, the company has grown rapidly, offering comprehensive booking services and unique features. Executives highlight Moore’s expertise in scaling businesses and forming strategic partnerships as key to driving continued growth and innovation.
Business Travel Show America
Only 10% of travel buyers currently trust artificial intelligence (AI) recommendations for bookings and policies, with the same number using AI-driven pricing insights, according to new research released ahead of Business Travel Show America, Oct. 15-16 in New York. Buyers cited automation, real-time disruption updates, budget optimization, personalization and streamlined reporting as the top ways AI could improve their work.
Booking.com, FareHarbor
Booking.com is integrating more than 150,000 new tours and activities from FareHarbor, a company it acquired in 2018.
The move should strengthen Booking.com’s attractions offering while giving FareHarbor’s network of operators direct reach to millions of customers. FareHarbor joins Musement, Viator and Klook as a content partner, helping Booking.com provide attractions in more than 5,000 cities and 115 countries. Booking.com is also leveraging AI to simplify discovery by grouping similar activities and using conversational tools to match travelers with experiences that fit their interests.
Thrust Carbon launches notifications
Thrust Carbon has introduced a suite of behavioral science-backed nudge notifications to encourage sustainable travel choices. The messages, available through any internal communication channel, use the EAST framework developed by the Behavioural Insights Team to make behavior changes easy, attractive, social and timely. The first nudges promote air-to-rail switches by showing side-by-side emissions and transit time comparisons. Additional features include switching carrier or class and evaluating trip return on investment (ROI).
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RMS, ResDiary
RMS has integrated with ResDiary to streamline accommodation and restaurant bookings into a single platform for hospitality operators.
The unified system enhances operational efficiency, reduces manual errors and enables personalized guest experiences by syncing guest details and preferences. Guests can now reserve tables while booking stays, creating a seamless journey and unlocking new revenue opportunities. The integration ensures real-time data accuracy, simplifies workflows and supports GDPR compliance with full audit trail tracking.
Thoughtworks, British Airways Holidays
Thoughtworks has been selected by British Airways Holidays to design and deliver a new digital retail platform aimed at improving customer experience throughout the travel journey.
The project is part of British Airways Holidays’ digital transformation strategy, focused on personalization, flexible choices and seamless multi-channel offerings. Thoughtworks will apply AI-enabled technology and modern architecture to create a platform built around customer needs. Both companies said the collaboration underscores their commitment to delivering a more intuitive, accessible and data-driven digital experience for travelers.
JTB Corp. acquires Northstar Travel Group
Northstar Travel Group has been acquired by JTB Corp., one of Japan’s travel solutions providers, from EagleTree Capital and co-investors. Northstar will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of JTB and continue under its existing leadership, including CEO Jason Young. The deal expands Northstar’s opportunities in Asia Pacific while maintaining its portfolio of travel industry events, media and information services.
HBX Group, Ayesa
HBX Group has launched a global AI-powered voice channel for customer service in partnership with Ayesa, integrating AI across chat, email, helpdesk and phone.
Built on Google Cloud’s Contact Center AI platform, the system uses Dialogflow, Google's platform for conversational agents, and Gemini models to enable natural language interaction, automate routine tasks and provide seamless handoffs to human agents. HBX said the technology improves efficiency and customer satisfaction by modernizing call experiences and reducing response times. The phased rollout began in September and will continue until November.
Travelport, Air Canada
Travelport and Air Canada have made the airline’s full New Distribution Capability content available to Travelport-connected agencies and travel management companies via Travelport+.
The launch allows agents to search, compare and book Air Canada’s fares and services across multiple markets, including Canada, the US, Australia, Europe and Asia, to offer more personalized and seamless travel experiences. Travelport+ provides a single view of fares and ancillaries with search speeds up to 23% faster.