Flight Centre Travel Group has made two major investments in its technology department. The company has fully acquired the travel management app Sam :], which it previously had a 25 percent stake in, and increased its investment in 30SecondsToFly, and its artificial intelligence-powered booking product Claire, to 10 percent.
FLT’s original 25 percent investment in Sam :] dates back to 2017, when it purchased its holding in 3Mundi. From now on, though, the company will be the sole owner and licensor of the mobile app. Over 40 FLT markets already use the Sam :] technology, including FCM Travel Solutions, Corporate Traveler, Campus Travel and Stage and Screen Travel.
Sam :] is a travel management app that helps users keep track of their itineraries before and while they travel, syncing their calendars, sending them alerts and notifications and offering direct communication between them and their travel manager. The app is currently available on both iOS and Android.
FLT also increased its investment in 30SecondsToFly, giving it exclusive use of Claire among TMCs for two years. Claire is a booking engine that uses an artificial intelligence-powered chat function to help users book air and hotels.
Comprising over 30 brands, FLT is a $20 billion business with company-owned operations in 23 countries. The two recent investments both came from the group’s ‘Labs’ program, a department dedicated to incubating and launching travel technologies. The initiative currently has locations in Boston, London, Barcelona and Bangkok.
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