Skift Global Forum Preview: Kiwi.com CEO Wants to Build a Rival to Expedia

Oliver Dlouhý co-founded the online travel agency Kiwi.com in 2012 as a price-comparison website for cheap airplane tickets. Dlouhý has since expanded the mission of his startup to become a broader online travel agency and technology services company. In June, U.S. private-equity firm General Atlantic took majority control of the company, based in the Czech Republic. The deal suggests the business has a shot at becoming a global household name in travel. On Monday, it appointed Daniel Finnegan, the former chief financial officer of Booking Holdings as an independent Board Director. It's been a wild ride for the 31-year-old Dlouhý. Last year, his company processed $1.21 billion (€1.1 billion) in gross bookings. Today, Kiwi.com has more than 2,900 workers. Kiwi.com's signature service is what it calls virtual interlining, or connecting airlines which do not cooperate. It lets shoppers mix-and-match transport into a single itinerary that it backs with its own customer service. Controversially, virtual interlining sometimes involves throwing away p