Industry-first AI platform

GLOBAL travel commerce platform Travelport has entered into a deal with technology giant IBM to deliver the industry’s first Artificial Intelligence (AI) corporate travel platform.

Designed to help businesses manage their corporate travel spend, IBM Travel Manager uses the IBM Cloud to track, manage, predict and analyse travel costs to assist agents manage and optimise their travel programs.

“IBM and Travelport are using the power of AI to unlock previously unavailable insights from multiple internal and external data sources,” said Elizabeth Pollock, IBM Industry client leader for travel and transportation.

“Travel managers can use this information to proactively drive improved supplier negotiations via real time and holistic data, enable budget holders to understand and change spending patterns, and improve travel policy compliance monitoring,” Pollock added.

The new platform features predictive data analytics using “what-if” type scenarios, as well as integrated travel and expense data to help travel management teams, procurement category managers, business units, finance and human resource departments optimise their travel program, control spend and enhance the end-traveller experience.

In addition, IBM Travel Manager features an interactive dashboard which can create alerts and notifications, as well as predictive and pre-defined spending trend analysis that will allow for “more robust insights and benchmarking than other reporting solutions”.