Two Expedia Inc. brands — Hotels.com and Expedia Affiliate Network (EAN) — have launched a mentorship-driven accelerator program in London for early to mid-stage lodging startups in Europe.
Called Hotel Jumpstart, the effort gives qualified entrepreneurs workspace, tools and expert mentorship at Traveltech Lab, a London-based incubator...
Think an eticket is cutting edge? How about using a biometric implant? Recently, companies have been experimenting with novel ways to pay, such as a credit card that uses biometric fingerprinting and cashless payment methods. Now, state-owned Swedish rail operator SJ is the first travel company in the world to allow passengers to use a...
A self-driving software company owned by General Motors, will start testing in New York in early 2018. Autonomous vehicles are already navigating the verdant hills of Pittsburgh and the pitched avenues of San Francisco. They may soon be tested by the chaos of Manhattan, where pedestrians, taxis, buses and bikes embark daily on an eternal quest...
Following the formation of a partnership with US firm Wright Electric, UK airline EasyJet are developing a battery-propelled aircraft capable of flights under two hours. This would mean the electric planes would be ideal for short-haul journeys such as London to Amsterdam, or Paris to Edinburgh. “For the first time in my career I can envisage a...
Snap, the messaging app, bets it can leap into becoming a platform for discovering places and hotels. Odds are against the company but in favor of visual-first search becoming widespread. Snap will work with Bookatable, Foursquare, Lyft, Michelin Guides, OpenTable, Resy, TripAdvisor, and Uber on a new tool called “context cards.” The cards let...
NVIDIA HAS SHOWN OFF the 'world's first' AI computer designed to power fully-autonomous 'robotaxis'. The new system, codenamed Pegasus, marks the first time that Nvidia's Drive PX platform has been capable of driving Level 5 driverless cars, which refers to vehicles that require no human control. Rather, Level 5 vehicles have full automation...
CUBIC, a San Diego-based technology company, is developing a "fastrack gateless gateline" that would enable commuters to pay for train tickets via facial recognition payment technology. The system will scan people's faces as they walk through a gate, while a paired smartphone app enables a seamlessly cashless transaction. An expected 65 to 75...
Muscovites could soon pay for their metro rides with a ring expected to go on sale later this month, its developer told the Govorit Moskva news agency on Tuesday. The Moscow-based PayRing company brands its product as a contactless bank card in the form of a ring. A company employee said deliveries would start in late October. A spokesperson...
The International Spa Association’s (ISPA) 2017 U.S. Spa Industry Study indicates that “wellness” continues to top the list of current spa trends. Quoting from the Study’s Executive Summary: "Wellness/health/fitness remained, by far, the most frequently cited trend affecting the spa industry, and was mentioned by almost one in three spas (32...
Discovery is partnering with Google on a virtual reality travel series that spans all seven continents. The 38-episode experience explores the rituals and traditions of cultures in North and South America, Asia, Australia, Africa, Antartica, and Europe. Emmy award-winner Sascha Unseld, who also directed Oculus Story Studio's Dear Angelica VR...