In the bustling setting of the ARIA Resort & Casino, the second annual Travel Tech Summit, a crucial component of the Virtuoso Travel Week, is set to transpire on August 12 from 9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. This event, led by esteemed tech entrepreneur and Virtuoso board member Gilad Berenstein, is poised to cast a spotlight on the most recent strides in the travel industry’s technological landscape. A significant highlight of the summit is the presentation of 20 pioneering startup enterprises that are significantly influencing the trajectory of travel tech.
Unveiling the Visionaries
Kicking off the proceedings, Matthew D. Upchurch, the Chairman and CEO of Virtuoso, will inaugurate the session. Berenstein himself will lead an engaging Innovator Spotlight session, which will feature luminaries such as Shane O’Flaherty from Microsoft, Stuart Greif from Forbes Travel, Cara Whitehill from Unlock Advisors, Charaf El Mansouri from Dharma, Zach Demuth from JLL, and Carolyn Corda from Deloitte. Moreover, the summit will shine a light on Virtuoso’s exclusive Tech Ecosystem, providing insights straight from the minds of the company’s in-house innovators.
Diverse Startup Showcases
The “Startup Showcase” segment of the event is divided into four distinctive categories: advisors and agencies, hotel, cruise, tour and transportation, sustainability, and emerging technologies with a specific focus on artificial intelligence. Attendees have the chance to participate in two separate showcases from these categories. Below is a glimpse of the businesses making their mark:
Advisor & Agency Tech
- HyperGuest: This platform fosters connectivity between hotels and travel companies, empowering the hospitality industry to forge stronger partnerships and capitalize on new opportunities.
- Tern Travel: An all-encompassing platform that equips advisors with comprehensive technology to enhance their ability to serve clients effectively.
- TravelWits: The innovators behind the first AI-powered travel search engine, optimizing door-to-door trips by integrating flight, hotel, car rental, and more.
- Tres Technologies: Streamlining advisor work through software integrations, automations, and workflows, maximizing efficiency.
- TripSuite: This venture-backed startup is creating a foundational operating system for travel agencies.
Hotel, Cruise, Tour & Transportation Tech
- NLX: An AI company focusing on delivering customer experiences that align with the demands of large enterprises.
- Origin: A specialized platform allowing travel experience providers to transition from spreadsheets to an online presence.
- ResortPass: Offering day access to hotel amenities, paving the way for new revenue streams and enriched experiences.
- The Host Co: Transforming short-term rentals into comprehensive hospitality experiences, enhancing guest satisfaction and revenue.
- TRVLR: A platform that integrates bookings, payments, and commissions for luxury hotels and travel advisors.
Sustainability Tech
- Ampaire: Pioneering the electrification of commercial aviation with its groundbreaking propulsion system, employed on global routes.
- Hydrogen: Aiming to establish hydrogen-based solutions for aviation and other mobility applications, targeting zero emissions.
- Kind Traveler: A travel platform enabling travelers to contribute to the well-being of the communities they visit through partnerships with charities.
- Tuzmo: Connecting travelers with local artisans, fostering cultural exchanges and supporting local economies.
- Weeva: A digital tool for tourism businesses to track and report real-time environmental and social impacts.
AI & Emerging Tech
- Dharma: Collaborating with brands to curate unique travel experiences, cultivating communities and engagement.
- Legends: Creating privacy-controlled, real-time profiles to personalize travel offerings and enhance loyalty and experiences.
- Point.me: The world’s first real-time search engine for credit card points and airline miles, revolutionizing loyalty rewards.
- Tango: Revolutionizing travel commerce through hyper-personalization powered by human-supervised Generative AI.
- Voyage.AI: Streamlining travel planning through automated logistics based on traveler preferences.
Summit’s Overarching Theme
The 2023 Travel Tech Summit is poised to unlock insights into the convergence of technology and travel, showcasing remarkable innovations that span various sectors. With a curated selection of startups offering novel solutions, the event will undoubtedly drive conversations around the transformative potential of technology in the travel industry.
TL;DR
Virtuoso’s second annual Travel Tech Summit, held within the Virtuoso Travel Week at ARIA Resort & Casino on August 12, is set to spotlight travel industry innovations and feature 20 groundbreaking travel tech startups. Key speakers include tech entrepreneur Gilad Berenstein and Virtuoso CEO Matthew D. Upchurch. The event will be divided into showcases for advisors and agencies, hotel and transportation tech, sustainability, and AI and emerging tech. Notable startups include HyperGuest, Tern Travel, NLX, Ampaire, Dharma, and Tango. The summit’s core message revolves around the synergy of technology and travel innovation.
Hi, I’m Oren, founder at BIGINTRO, a content strategy agency that helps B2B companies drive growth. We develop search, social, PR, and content marketing strategies tailored to business goals. I also have a dog named Milo.