Scores of Americans already use Rakuten.com for cashback without knowing it belongs to one of Japan's largest tech companies. Rakuten Travel wants to turn those shoppers into hotel guests.
Travel companies aren’t facing a new AI gatekeeper — they’re facing several. Now the infrastructure is being built across Amazon, Meta, and Google, and each works differently.Â
Food ordering is Amazon's dress rehearsal for voice-driven travel planning and booking — a move that could put Alexa between travelers and travel suppliers.
Hotel groups won't be content to just run hotels anymore, says Mit Shah, a hotel real estate investor. Soon they may offer student housing, adult active communities, and other "branded living" services thanks to the data-crunching potential unlocked by AI.
The advantage of Booking Holdings' size and wide geographic footprint is that a problem in one region might be balanced by gains in another. That means being agnostic can be part of the strategy.
The real challenge for MakeMyTrip isn’t just building an end-to-end travel company — it’s making sure the experience is actually seamless. Can it truly integrate flights, hotels, ground transport, and everything else into one frictionless journey? That’s the test that will define its success or failure.