Category Technology, AI, Organisations & Operators

Lobby has raised USD 2.2 million in funding from Founderful. As part of the investment, Pascal Mathis, Co-Founder of the venture capital firm and of GetYourGuide with wide experience in scaling startups, will join Lobby’s Board of Directors.

After successfully closing the investment round, Lobby will be able to expand beyond the hospitality sector with the Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) vertical, experiences and attractions business, cruises and airlines as its main goals.

Chinese online travel platform Fliggy – the travel division of Alibaba Group – can confirm that following a trial period its AI interface is now able to process bookings.

This has been made possible through the use of parent company Alibaba’s consumer-facing application Qwen App, which is available to users in China and experienced over 200 million AI-native shopping orders during the recent Chinese Spring Festival campaign.

As the gateway to Silicon Valley, San José Mineta International Airport (SJC) is bringing cutting-edge artificial intelligence directly into the passenger journey. Today, the Airport will debut an interactive AI-powered humanoid robot, named “José,” from local start-up, IntBot. Designed to greet travelers, answer questions and provide real-time information in 50+ languages — José will be stationed at Terminal B, Gate 24 (near Zoom Zone), to help turn one of the region’s busiest public spaces into a live testing ground for emerging technology.

HonTrip, a pioneering AI-powered intelligent travel platform, is set to make its debut at ITB Berlin 2026 alongside its inbound tourism brand Seeking China, unveiling a next-generation travel model redefining international travelers’ exploration of China. At the show, the company will spotlight solutions that fuse AI itinerary planning, immersive cultural storytelling, and integrated medical and wellness travel — marking its foray into Europe and reinforcing its position in China’s evolving inbound tourism market.

Spain-based Travel Compositor, a leading provider of booking engine solutions for online leisure travel sellers, part of Travelsoft—the global travel software-as-a-service (SaaS) player whose technologies are used by travel agents and tour operators to package and distribute travel—, announces the launch of Dante, its new AI-based patent to revolutionize content loading.

Dida Holdings, the global AI-first travel distribution platform, today announced a foundational seven-year preferred strategic partnership with HBX Group, a leading global B2B TravelTech marketplace, marking a decisive step in the evolution of travel distribution infrastructure ahead of the next phase of Dida’s global growth.

Propellic, a category-leading digital and performance marketing agency dedicated exclusively to the travel and tourism industry, today announced the expansion of its executive leadership team with the appointments of Jeff Johnson as Chief Operating Officer and John Matson as Chief Revenue Officer. The additions mark a key milestone as Propellic enters its next phase of growth, enterprise expansion, and product innovation.
The leadership appointments underscore Propellic’s focus on scaling operational excellence, strengthening revenue discipline, and expanding the ways it supports travel brands navigating an increasingly complex marketing and distribution landscape.

The roomangel Foundation today announced the introduction of Assetware, a new intelligence category designed to redefine how artificial intelligence is connected, governed, and applied across the hospitality industry.
The announcement was made during the Hotel Revolution Summit Dubai, where industry leaders gathered to examine the structural changes reshaping hotel performance in an increasingly AI-driven world.

As a leading enterprise in the global travel distribution eco-system, Dida has been ranked in the “High-Value Globalisation Investment Brands 2025” list, part of the Forbes China 30&30 Go-International Series, co-published with the LinkedIn Economic Graph.

The Forbes China 30&30 Go-International Series shines a spotlight on Chinese-origin brands that have achieved robust growth paths and championed cutting-edge innovation on the global stage. The series recognises enterprises that demonstrate exceptional ingenuity, sustainable growth, and impactful global influence as they scale beyond China’s borders.