The FutureTravel Summit 2025 returned to Barcelona on 30 October, bringing collectively virtually 500 of the brightest innovators within the journey trade on the iconic Antigua Fábrica Estrella Damm.

With a packed agenda of panels, keynotes, and networking, the spotlight of the day was as soon as once more the FutureTravel Pitch Competitors.

Ten early-stage TravelTech startups took the stage to compete for a game-changing €350k prize package deal. After one of many closest votes the jury has ever confronted (and we imply shut!), ReLUGG, a German startup that gives immediate baggage compensation, was topped the winner.

The pitch finalists

The competitors featured ten bold startups from throughout Europe and past, tackling real-world challenges in journey with cutting-edge tech and artistic enterprise fashions. And whereas ReLUGG ultimately took dwelling the grand prize, every of the opposite 9 startups introduced one thing distinctive and worthwhile to the fifth version of the FutureTravel Summit:

• ALOE: Based in 2023, ALOE is the expertise layer for hospitality, a plug-and-play platform the place lodges can promote their very own providers and provide curated experiences from native suppliers by an built-in market. The Italian startup permits company to guide all the things in a single place, whereas lodges earn a fee on each sale. It simplifies the reserving, administration, and fee processing of exterior experiences, serving to lodges unlock new income streams.

• ALTEK AI: Headquartered in Norway, Altek AI helps lodges automate customer support. Its AI platform connects on to resort programs such because the PMS and reserving engine, permitting the assistant to reply questions, make bookings, and upsell in actual time. Their resolution is designed to enhance the visitor expertise, cut back employees workload, and enhance income.

• Controlá: Based in 2023, Controlá installs plug-and-play sensible units to automate vitality administration in trip leases, places of work, and coworking areas. Their system detects presence and environmental situations to robotically management air-con, lighting, and water heating, decreasing vitality consumption with out compromising person consolation. Based mostly in Spain, they promote sustainability tailored to your wants.

• Cora: Arrange in 2023 in Italy, Cora develops an operations administration platform powered by AI and designed for each kind of lodging that seamlessly permits the management of any hospitality facility. It streamlines duties like housekeeping, upkeep, and inner communication by a cloud-based dashboard and cell app. The platform helps enhance employees productiveness, cut back prices, and guarantee constant service high quality.

• Cumbaya: Based in 2024, this Belgian startup provides an AI-powered platform that simplifies journey planning, reserving, and administration. Customers can immediately generate personalised itineraries primarily based on their pursuits, wants, and price range. The app additionally supplies real-time suggestions and dynamic instruments to regulate plans on the go, streamlining your entire journey expertise.

• HostyAI: Straddling Portugal and Australia and based in 2024, HostyAI provides a SaaS platform that helps short-term rental hosts and property managers automate visitor communication. Their AI-powered assistant handles inquiries, sends personalised messages, and helps company 24/7 throughout platforms like Airbnb, WhatsApp, and e mail. By integrating with reservation programs, it adapts responses primarily based on reserving particulars, home guidelines, and native rules.

• By way of.ai: Based mostly within the UK, By way of.ai operates on the intersection of AI expertise and buyer engagement. Based in 2023, the startup permits manufacturers to combine a branded, conversational assistant into their present apps or web sites, providing customers real-time, personalised journey and life-style suggestions. These clever brokers can be found 24/7, repeatedly studying from interactions and are designed to show on a regular basis engagement into significant, loyalty-building experiences.

• Voyla: Based in 2024, this Hong Kong-based startup addresses a serious ache level for Gen Z travellers who save lots of of posts on social media and platforms like Google Maps, however by no means organise them. Voyla is constructing a private AI agent that captures and learns customers’ journey preferences from scattered social media saves. The AI agent analyses shared posts to know every person’s distinctive journey vibe, then robotically organises and recommends personalised locations that match their pursuits.

• Yaay: Headquartered in Denmark and based in 2024, Yaay is an AI- and creator-powered journey app that transforms customers’ favorite TikTok and Instagram journey movies into bookable journeys. Customers can save locations, lodges, experiences, or eating places to Yaay, organise them in visible moodboards, and let the AI discover a technique to guide all of it. Alternatively, they’ll uncover shoppable movies from trusted journey creators and the broader group immediately on the platform.

The jury and the prize

This 12 months’s judging panel included top-tier VCs and TravelTech specialists: Michael Morvan (ROCH Ventures), Andrea Oliver (Nauta Capital), Jose Gaytan de Ayala (Kinnevik), and Elena Ruiz Requena (Amadeus Ventures). The vote was exceptionally shut, underlining simply how aggressive the sector was this 12 months.

The winner acquired a prize package deal valued at €350k, together with:

In regards to the winner

Based in 2024 and primarily based in Germany, ReLUGG is tackling a well known journey headache: delayed or lacking baggage. The platform companions with airways to offer immediate compensation and ship baggage necessities to affected passengers inside half-hour of touchdown.

Their enterprise mannequin expenses airways per passenger served – no upfront prices or long-term commitments. The tech integrates immediately with airline programs and passenger communications, making activation, eligibility checks, and reporting as seamless because the service itself.

“Successful the Pitching Competitors for ReLUGG at FutureTravel Summit 2025 is a pivotal milestone for us. The prize package deal will allow us to additional develop our V.3 of our product. We’re grateful to have shared the stage with among the most fun startups in TravelTech, and we sit up for constructing the trade with all our companions,” shared Melilizwe Gqobo, Founder and CEO.

The influence of the FutureTravel Summit

With every passing 12 months, the FutureTravel Summit continues to place itself as a cornerstone occasion for these shaping the following wave of journey innovation.

The 2025 version introduced collectively practically 500 startup Founders, buyers, corporates, and journey executives to share insights and construct connections. Whereas ReLUGG walked away with the highest prize, all finalists demonstrated the creativity, agility, and technical imaginative and prescient that outline the way forward for journey.

The Summit as soon as once more proved that startups aren’t merely supporting gamers within the journey trade – they’re setting the tempo.

As soon as once more, congratulations to ReLUGG, the winner of this 12 months’s pitch competitors, and thanks to all of the members and attendees who made the summit a powerful success.

Right here’s to shaping the way forward for journey, one innovation at a time.

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