SkyLink upgrades AI servicing capabilities with Amadeus. AI corporate travel assistant SkyLink has undergone a "pretty substantial upgrade" as its acquisition by Amadeus earlier this year has given it additional resources to scale globally, co-founder and CEO Atyab Bhatti told BTN. Founded in 2021, SkyLink is a large language model-based tool that can facilitate bookings based on traveler preferences and policies, integrated with their existing chat channels such as Microsoft Teams and Slack. Bhatti said the company has completed about a year-and-a-half long upgrade to increase the flexibility of its travel agent capabilities. "Now, you can actually talk to SkyLink, interrupt it and tell it 50 different things in the middle of a conversation," Bhatti said. "We can process the request in real time and update what's happening and do all of this at a global scale." In addition, Bhatti said SkyLink's software has become "even more agentic" with travel modification capabilities beyond just booking and managing travel, including handling exchanges in certain domains. Additional capabilities include the ability to help rebook trips or handle multiple-month trips, he said. SkyLink also has built "robust analytics" to provide an audit trail to show the reasoning behind its decisions, he added. "If you can take software that has an extreme amount of transparency, that allows us to have a very high-quality production tool that travel managers can give to their travelers that they can audit themselves and serves the interests of their corporate enterprises," Bhatti said. SkyLink has publicly identified enterprise clients including McKinsey & Company and Sony, and Bhatti said the company continues to grow its large-company client base. That has been boosted by its acquisition by Amadeus earlier this year, which Bhatti said has provided "a very symbiotic relation, where Amadeus allows us to move fast and build but at the same time gives us the support and resources you would have at a large corporate." In a special AI report published last month, Amadeus noted "accelerating" adoption of SkyLink and said it stands in particular to help expand "Amadeus' existing strong customer base in North America." That is coming through SkyLink's technology to support travel management companies - which Bhatti identified as another area of growth - in increasing productivity by handling non-revenue-generating requests. "The people element will always be there in this industry; it will just be augmented with AI," Bhatti said. "You have a new paradigm energy coming in, but that doesn't mean you're going to lose your TMC partner."

Amadeus acquires SkyLink for conversational AI integration. Photo Credit: Agentic AI travel booking is on the way, and MCP is the lynchpin that will make it work. Adobe Stock / Debalina Comprehensive Summarization: Amadeus, a leading travel technology company, has acquired SkyLink, a New York-based startup specializing in conversational AI for travel. This acquisition aims to enhance Amadeus' products with advanced AI capabilities, particularly for business travel. The integration is designed to facilitate quick bookings for hotels and flights through conversational interfaces, promising cost savings and productivity gains for travelers. Amadeus plans to extend SkyLink's AI technology beyond corporate travel to its airline, airport, and hospitality solutions in the future. This strategic move underscores the growing importance of AI in streamlining travel processes and enhancing customer experiences in the travel industry. Key Points: * Amadeus has acquired SkyLink to integrate conversational AI into its products, focusing on business travel. * The integration enables travelers to book hotels and flights swiftly via conversational interfaces, aiming for cost savings and productivity improvements. * Amadeus intends to expand SkyLink's AI technology to its airline, airport, and hospitality solutions in the future. Actionable Takeaways: * Enhanced Travel Booking Efficiency: Companies can leverage Amadeus' enhanced AI capabilities to streamline their travel booking processes, reducing time and costs associated with manual bookings. This is particularly beneficial for businesses with frequent travel needs, as it can lead to significant productivity gains. * Future Expansion of AI in Travel Solutions: Amadeus' plan to expand SkyLink's technology beyond corporate travel indicates a broader trend in the travel industry towards adopting advanced AI solutions. Travel companies should consider investing in or partnering with AI startups to stay competitive and improve customer experiences. * Market Leadership in AI-Driven Travel Tech: Amadeus' acquisition positions it as a leader in integrating AI into travel services. Other travel tech companies should monitor this trend and consider adopting similar AI technologies to remain relevant and competitive in the evolving travel landscape. Contextual Insights: The acquisition of SkyLink by Amadeus reflects the current trend in the travel industry towards leveraging AI and conversational interfaces to enhance user experience and operational efficiency. As travel becomes increasingly digital, the demand for seamless, quick, and cost-effective booking solutions is on the rise. This trend is supported by recent insights from industry thought leaders who emphasize the importance of AI in transforming travel services. Furthermore, the expansion of SkyLink's technology suggests a broader industry shift towards more sophisticated AI applications in travel, including airline, airport, and hospitality sectors. This contextual analysis highlights the strategic importance of AI in the travel industry and the potential for startups like SkyLink to drive innovation and growth. Stay ahead with travel trade today - AI news that matters. Get curated travel AI insights - choose the newsletters that matter to you. Choose your newsletters: Join thousands of travel leaders. Unsubscribe anytime.