WTM London 2025 unveils Technology Summit agenda with focus on AI, data and airlines | News
WTM London, the world’s most influential travel event, organized by RX, frames this year’s Technology Summit around the critical role technology can play in supporting vendors and suppliers during the current period of disruption and emerging new challenges.
The summit will take place on Wednesday, November 5 on the Purple Podium from 10.45 am. Over three hours, attendees will listen to a global lineup of carefully selected technology experts, from C-suite executives to entrepreneurs via lawyers, investors and researchers.
The agenda supports WTM London’s decision to align all stages and sessions under the unifying theme: Reimagining Travel in a Changing World. Twelve different sessions have been curated by Timothy O’Neil-Dunne, WTM technology advisor and an established industry commentator and observer. He co-founded Expedia’s management team in the 1990s and is currently a director at T2Impact Ltd, a global consultancy and venture firm focused on aviation, travel and tourism.
WTM London’s official technology partner, Holafly, will feature CEO Pablo Gómez Fernandez-Quintanilla in a dynamic 20-minute conversation with Timothy entitled ‘Connected Futures: Tech, Data and the Power of eSIMs.’ This session will take place on Wednesday, November 5 at 1:50 PM on the Purple Podium. One of the highlights is a debate about whether, despite the hype, artificial intelligence (AI) is the enemy of travel. He is joined on stage by Stephen Joyce from Prospect Group and Christian Watts from Magpie Travel.
AI will likely be referenced during the sessions, both directly and indirectly. Rhys Griffiths and Farina Azam, partners at travel law specialist Fox Williams, will outline the legal and regulatory implications of the widespread adoption of AI for travel companies.
Meanwhile, Andreas Nau of Ennea Capital Partners and Min Liu of Cambon Partners will share their frontline experience on how the investment community is responding to the new reality of AI-driven disruption.
There will also be a session delving deeper into how AI is redefining the role of travel agencies, with James Lever from DataArt and Gulce Rozenveld from Oojo.com. Likewise, AI is revolutionizing travel planning and inspiration, with video content becoming increasingly important in the traveler’s decision-making process. Sally Bunnell from NaviSavi will explain more.
Data is a major discussion point in the age of AI. Dave Goodger of Tourism Economics will explain how travel companies can combine travel-specific insights with economic indicators to make smarter decisions. Elsewhere, A3M’s Thomas Dillon and Trip.com Group’s James Spalding will discuss how to balance traveler demand for hyper-personalization with regulatory requirements for data privacy and security.
Payments continues to be an area of interest and innovation, and this year’s summit will include a session looking at how technology-driven payment innovations are helping travel thrive. James Lemon of Stripe, Will Plummer of Trust My Group, Livia Vite of actuary.aero and Qais Amori of Almosafer will provide different perspectives on the overall payments landscape, looking at both business-to-business and business-to-consumer.
Airlines are starting to have a stronger presence at WTM London in general and at the Technology Summit in particular. OAG’s Filip Filipov will provide a five-minute snapshot of the most critical trends in aviation and flight data before T2RL’s Amanda Campbell and Nadine Wood, formerly of Qantas, analyze the evolution of low-cost airlines and highlight the lessons that legacy airlines can learn.
Finally, beyond the software, Roman Townsend from Belvera Partners will demonstrate the latest developments in artificial and virtual reality.
Timothy O-Neil Dunne explained: “Attendees will listen to an eclectic mix of experts, all with strong and sometimes differing opinions on the topics dominating today’s travel technology conversations.
“We’re taking a broad approach to AI, but I’ve structured the summit to include data, payments, airlines and more. We’ll then close with the most important question of the moment: is AI good or bad for travel? Make sure you join us on the Purple Stage on Wednesday, November 5 at 10:45 a.m. to be part of a candid and forward-looking conversation.”
