Michael Baker

New York

Executive Editor at Business Travel News

Travel industry writer, focused on airlines and with a long history covering the lodging industry. Any opinions expressed are my own. Pronouns are he/him/his.

Articles

BCD Survey: Travel Mgrs. Overwhelmingly Rely on TMCs for Data

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Travel management companies are the largest sources of data and data analysis for travel buyers, though a significant portion also rely on internal data analysts, according to a survey of 197 travel buyers conducted by BCD Travel.
Survey: Corp. Travelers Report Expense Frustration

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Payment & Expense More than eight in 10 business travelers said they struggle with travel expenses, with such practices as using personal cards or booking through consumer travel platforms still prevalent, according to a TravelPerk survey of 4,000 business travelers.
Trump Administration Restricts Travel to U.S. from 19 Countries

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

President Donald Trump on Wednesday signed a proclamation fully restricting nationals from 12 countries to enter the United States, along with seven other countries from which travel is partially restricted. TheÂ highly anticipated travel banÂ stems from one of Trump's executive orders from the first day of his current term, from which "national security agencies engaged in a robust assessment of the risk that countries posed to the United States," according to the proclamation.
Amadeus Takes Stake in Acai Travel

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Amadeus is taking a minority stake in generative AI startup Acai Travel, an investment the company said would add to its own development of AI solutions. The investment, the financial terms of which were not disclosed, will "accelerate our mission to reduce operational costs and enhance the traveler experience across the travel ecosystem," according to Acai Travel cofounder and CEO Riccardo Vittoria.
Former Latam Sales Exec Joins Mendel as Head of Travel

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Mexico City-based spend management platform Mendel has appointed former Latam Airlines sales executive Laura Madriñán to lead its travel vertical, the company announced. Based in Chile, Madriñán will serve as Mendel's head of travel, a growing vertical for the company following the launch of its online booking tool last year.
Concur Integrates GeoSure Data into Hotel Booking

3 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Technology Concur Travel has integrated travel and risk assessment provider GeoSure into its hotel booking experience, the companies announced. With the integration, users—including travelers booking with the SAP Concur mobile app and travel managers using the Concur Travel dashboard—can see GeoSure's GeoSafeScores related to hotel bookings. The scores are based on seven safety categories that show how secure a location is on a neighborhood level.
Companies Face Growing Need to Communicate U.S. Border Advice

4 weeks ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Increased scrutiny at the U.S. border has led to increased anxiety and concerns for business travelers entering the countryâ€”and an increased need for companies to provide information and resources to address those concerns. Global mobility specialist Vialto Partners earlier this month said it had seen a sharp increase in emergency calls related to U.S. entry issues, with the typical weekly call load of 15 to 20 per week doubling to 40.
Amex GBT Enhances Virtual Agent, Data Tools for Egencia Clients

1 month ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Technology American Express Global Business Travel has expanded the capabilities of its virtual agent for Egencia customers as well as added a new AI-powered data and reporting tool, the travel management company announced. For the virtual agent, which Amex GBT first introduced in 2020, the TMC has introduced a large-language-model-supported chat, enabling it to understand and respond to more complex inquiries.
TPConnects Integrating AI Assistant into Seller, Airline Platforms

1 month ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Airline content aggregator TPConnects is integrating its conversational AI agent into its platforms for travel sellers and airlines, the company announced. TPConnects' Trip Captain travel assistant, which the company developed via the Amazon Bedrock service, will be part of both the Iris platform for travel sellers and the Astra platform for airlines.
JTB Launches Spotnana-Based Teal Platform

1 month ago | businesstravelnews.com | Michael Baker

Technology JTB Business Travel has launched a travel management platform for clients built on Spotnana technology, the travel management company announced. The TMC's Teal serves as a single platform for travelers and travel managers as well as JTB's travel advisors, in which travel managers monitor program data, set policies and track progress with sustainability initiatives, according to JTB.