Skift Take

Today’s podcast looks at the state of venture capital, Airbnb’s California pricing display, and corporate travel’s move to AI.

Rashaad Jorden

Good morning from Skift. It’s Friday, June 21, 2024, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

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Episode Notes

Venture capital investment in the travel industry hit its lowest level in a decade in 2023, one finding from a new Skift Research report examining the state of venture capital investment in travel. 

The travel industry had only $2.9 billion of venture capital investment in 2023, compared to nearly $9 billion in 2019. Senior Research Analyst Pravani Agarwal also notes the number of deals last year in the travel industry dropped more than 20% from the previous year. That’s the second steepest since the start of the pandemic.

But while the trend is for fewer deals, they are on pace to be of a larger average size than 2023. This should lead to an overall increase in travel VC funding in 2024, Agarwal writes. The growth areas are in tours and experiences, AI & automation and hospitality employment.

Next, starting July 1, Airbnb will display the total price before taxes of a stay in California to comply with the state’s new law banning junk fees, writes Executive Editor Dennis Schaal. 

Those junk fees would include host cleaning fees and Airbnb’s service fee, for example. Schaal notes that a guest outside of California booking an Airbnb in the state won’t automatically see the total price unless they choose to view it. The short-term rental giant rolled out a total price toggle button across the U.S. in May 2023. 

Finally, a growing number of corporate travel decision-makers are investing in artificial intelligence. Reporter Christina Sciaudone delves into how AI can solve problems in business travel. 

A Mastercard survey found that 90% of travel decision-makers plan to invest in AI and machine learning to improve operations and personalize employee travel. Suzanne Neufang, the CEO of the Global Business Travel Association, said AI can help overcome the complexities of corporate travel. 

FCM Travel, in particular, sees AI reshaping how it operates, including providing the company the opportunity to offer clients more personalized offerings. 

Producer/Presenter: Jane Alexander