September 12, 2022. Eddy Travels has announced that they were acquired by a New York-based ancillary travel product marketplace TripAdd, part of the Blue Ribbon Bags group. The Eddy Travels team will join TripAdd to develop the marketplace further and continue the B2B Eddy AI chatbot services.
Eddy Travels was founded in early 2019 and specializes in chatbot AI technology in the form of a travel assistant. To date, the company has raised 1.5 million euros in funding. Over 4 million users have engaged with the assistant to find flights, hotels, apartments, tours, or activities worldwide from platforms such as Skyscanner, Booking, and GetYourGuide.
“TripAdd is growing in the global travel market and requires an automated omnichannel solution for marketing and sales operations. This is where our state-of-the-art AI chatbot solution will play a key role,” explained CEO of Eddy Travels, Edmundas Balčikonis. “TripAdd already uses an AI system for its recommendations which makes this acquisition a seamless transition for us as machine learning experts.”
Using TripAdd, companies can add ancillary travel products to their platforms and generate extra revenue from selling personalized bundles to their customers. Scaling is the primary objective for TripAdd since the travel industry is experiencing a rebound after the global COVID-19 pandemic. In some countries, the volumes of flights and bookings are surging back to pre-pandemic levels.
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“This summer has shown that people are eager to travel abroad again since most have spent two years in their home countries,” adds Mr. Balčikonis. “AI technology is a hot topic in the travel industry since legacy travel distribution systems are being upgraded to new generation technology, and TripAdd will be one of the leaders in the space.”
The Eddy Travels team will continue to operate from their offices in Vilnius, Lithuania, as they start a new phase of expansion. “The whole team is excited to join the TripAdd family. We have been collaborating with them for some time now with great results,” says Edmundas Balčikonis. “With the growth back in the travel industry, the time is perfect for a merger. Both sides are eager to aid the travel industry recover faster.”
TripAdd views the addition of Eddy Travels as a strategic move and looks to expand the team. “At TripAdd, we were impressed with Eddy Travels’ team and technology from the first meeting,” states Gabriel Menkin, Co-founder and CEO at TripAdd. “The technology talent pool in Lithuania is amazing, and we are especially keen to expand our R&D office in Vilnius. We are now hiring for multiple positions there. If you are excited about travel and artificial intelligence, join us to build the best new-generation travel tech.”
The next step for both companies is the launch of a TripAdd ancillary marketplace with a number of international online travel agencies. And the expansion of engineering and sales teams in Vilnius, Lithuania.
