As artificial intelligence (AI) reshapes travel as we know it, The Phocuswright Conference 2025 will bring together leading voices from across the industry to share their experiences and insights for the future.
The full program is now live for the event which takes place November 18-20 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt in San Diego, CA, 2025. The conference will include frank conversations, the latest Phocuswright research and debates on how the industry can best embrace the current shifts in technology and consumer behavior.
Who is on stage?
The lineup includes:
- Barry Diller, chairman and senior executive, IAC and Expedia Group
- Rich Barton, co-founder, Expedia; co-founder and executive chairman, Zillow
- Erik Blachford, former CEO, Expedia; venture partner, Pine5 Partners
- Omri Morgenshtern, CEO, Agoda
- Travis Katz, general manager and VP, shopping, YouTube
- Geoff Freeman, president and CEO, U.S. Travel Association
- Rob Ransom, SVP and chief strategy officer, Booking Holdings
- James Byers, product lead for travel, Google Search
These executives will share their insights into where travel is headed, how AI is reshaping the game and the strategies needed to stay competitive.
Fresh voices
Leaders from Reddit, TikTok and YouTube will take to the stage to explore how social platforms are collapsing the path from inspiration to booking. With creators driving demand, TikTok piloting direct hotel bookings and Reddit and YouTube shaping new communities of travel discovery, the session signals a turning point for how the next generation dreams, plans and books travel.
Innovators
Startups, scaleups and established players take to the stage during the three-day event. This year’s lineup includes ABTasty, Acai, The Data Appeal Company, eTraveli Group, Gimmonix, Holafly, TripGain and Vio.com.
Global perspectives
The program also features voices from every across the world including:
- Omri Morgenshtern, CEO, Agoda on AI, Asia, and global expansion
- Frederic Lalonde, co-founder and CEO, Hopper on reshaping travel retail from North America
- Executives from Accor, Booking Holdings, Google, Chase Travel, Visa, Stripe, Sabre, Marriott, Airbnb and Amadeus, sharing insights on travel’s greatest challenges and opportunities
Further highlights
- Candid executive interviews to surface real tradeoffs: control of demand, AI investment priorities and where profit pools are heading.
- The new travel seller arena with banks, membership organizations and fintech platforms stepping into retail, redefining loyalty, audience access and economics and further splintering distribution.
- Payments, trust and the agent era with Visa and Stripe (and a soon-to-be-announced AI platform) exploring how AI agents will actually transact: identity, fraud, dispute risk and the invisible UX that decides conversion and margin.
- Consumer reality checks. New research on U.S. traveler payments, luxury and loyalty behaviors clarifies where consumers see value.
“Our agenda is designed to capture the forces reshaping travel,” said Pete Comeau, Phocuswright’s managing director. “This year’s speakers will spotlight AI-driven platforms, the rise of social discovery, new global competitors and the increasingly empowered traveler. By bringing together the voices that matter most, we’re giving the industry a stage that both reflects its present and defines its future.”
The Phocuswright Conference 2025
Join us at The Phocuswright Conference 2025 in San Diego from November 18-20 to hear leaders from across the global travel industry discuss and debate the latest technology, consumer behavior and wider industry trends.