TECHNOLOGY


been programmed. So, a model is only as good as we are.” Gauld acknowledged the sustainability


concerns around training AI models, given the level of energy consumption, saying: “There need to be discussions around sustainability and AI. It will take the energy providers, the G7 countries and a host of other bodies to come together. It’s a challenge that needs to be tackled quickly.”


TECH PRIORITIES IN AVIATION The strong recovery in travel “is allowing airlines to spend more on technology”, according to Gauld, who identified three priority areas for investment. “First, legacy evolution – there


is a lot of activity in modernising platforms, moving legacy systems to the cloud. Second, getting to know the customer better and entice them into buying. Third, the experience itself – using data and AI to know where the customer is in their journey, to ensure they are getting the best experience.” Bowman identified another area in which “we’ve seen momentum”


FIGURE 43: UK TRAVEL IT SPEND BY TECH CATEGORY


£100m £200m £300m £400m £500m £600m £700m £800m


£0 Hardware Software


Computer services


Telecom services


2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023*


Introducing AI into any core processes makes it potentially more vulnerable. You’re handing processes over to a machine and a machine is vulnerable


FIGURE 42: TECH CHALLENGES: BUSINESS TRAVEL AGENTS


10 20 30 40 50


0 46% 38% 32% 24% 22% 7%


Source: GBTA, October 2023 Base: 865 GBTA members


AIRLINES’ New Distribution Capability (NDC) is rated the biggest tech challenge by


travel management companies (Figure 42). UK travel spending on computer services tops all other tech categories (Figure 43)


involving “the business change impact of technology”, saying: “This is what I would call ‘connected operations’, by which I mean enabled operations that allow you to make smarter decisions. “The traditional way of innovation


in aviation has been ‘Here is a new bit of tech, let’s put it in place and optimise a silo.’ Now we see more of a holistic view. So, if I have solutions A, B and C across processes X, Y and Z, what does the integrated insight allow me to do differently and how can I leverage those insights to deliver more efficiency? It’s about new ways of working off the back of insights, and we’re seeing that at both airport and airline level. It should mean better decision-making.” There has been less progress on


IT/telecom staff


*Estimated spend Source: ONS/Travolution


‘digital identity’ and ‘seamless travel’. Bowman insisted: “There is nothing wrong with the concept of a device- enabled or face-enabled process. The challenge is the readiness of end-to- end players to allow the integration. “For example, I’m working with


Travel Weekly Insight Report 2024 33


New tech, including NDC Budget constraints


Integrating existing systems AI Data security/privacy Lack of expertise


£113m £125m


£94m £81m


£130m £144m


£361m £411m


£214m £218m


£359m


£492m £511m


£588m


£394m £435m


£642m £689m £315m £371m


£273m £268m


£347m £417m


£324m £340m £354m £377m


£458m £487m


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