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ABOUT THE BUSINESS TRAVEL SHOW EUROPE INNOVATION FACEOFF 

The Business Travel Show Europe Innovation Faceoff 2026 features 9 presentations of cutting-edge products, technologies, and services that addressed industry challenges and supported managed business travel, meetings, or business travellers.

The presentations will take place during the hosted buyer pre-show conference of the Business Travel Show Europe on 23 June. This year, not only will the judges will be selecting their winner for the prestigious Business Travel Innovator award, but the audience will have chance to participate and vote for the People's Choice award.

 

DISCOVER THE 9 SUPPLIERS COMPETING IN THE BUSINESS TRAVEL SHOW EUROPE INNOVATION FACEOFF 2026


Acai is an AI platform that automates travel operations for TMCs and travel agencies. When a flight changes, a ticket goes unused, or a traveler needs support, Acai reads live booking data, applies travel policy, and resolves the issue in real time—without the traveler waiting in a queue. It works autonomously or with a human in the loop depending on complexity, always inside the tools agencies already use. Acai handles up to 70% of the operational workload without agent intervention. The result is faster resolutions, consistent service quality, and measurable improvements in traveler experience—without adding headcount. Customers report CSAT improvements of up to 20 basis points within the first quarter.


Direct Travel is one of the world’s largest travel management companies, focused on delivering exceptional, groundbreaking solutions to every client and traveler. With a long history of proven market expertise, we blend advanced technology, superior service, and expert insights to drive tangible value and meaningful savings -offering solutions across Corporate Travel, Leisure Travel, Meetings & Events, and specialty travel businesses. Through Avenir, our next-generation platform developed with leading technology partners, we provide the industry’s broadest inventory and a modern, real-time shopping experience that empowers travelers and simplifies program management. What truly sets us apart is the human care behind the technology, delivered by an experienced, passionate team dedicated to anticipating needs and delivering exceptional service at every step. 


FareX.ai by SeatCash is a predictive intelligence platform for airline travel, helping business travelers, corporate buyers and meeting planners make smarter air purchasing decisions. Its core products provide “when to buy” and “where to meet” insights by analyzing how airlines price fares across the sales window for specific origin-destination markets. Covering more than 6,000 global markets and powered by trillions of data points, FareX.ai delivers proactive recommendations during the purchasing experience rather than reacting after booking. For corporate travel programs, SeatCash estimates savings of up to 10%, while its meetings tool helps planners identify optimal destinations and buying windows in seconds.


Groupize is an AI-powered platform transforming how global organizations manage in-person meetings, events, and group travel. Powered by aime™, its coordinated ecosystem of AI agents handles sourcing, approvals, attendee management, travel logistics, compliance, and reconciliation end-to-end—through a simple, guided natural language experience. Through its integrated marketplace, Groupize connects buyers and suppliers of meeting services, helping enterprises unlock cost savings, operational efficiency, and full program visibility while driving measurable value across every in-person meeting and event. Founded in 2013, Groupize is defining the future of meetings through agentic AI—fundamentally changing how meetings are managed.


KAYAK for Business is redefining corporate travel by making it simpler and faster to plan, book, and manage work trips for companies of all sizes—from fast-growing startups to global enterprises. By combining KAYAK’s intuitive consumer experience and leading search engine with smart tools designed for traveler autonomy and real-time program control, we make corporate travel seamless.


Nowadays is an AI-powered meetings and events platform that automates venue sourcing, negotiations and event management for corporate teams. Using natural-language inputs, the platform structures RFPs, contacts venues by email and phone, gathers availability, manages negotiations and returns direct proposals within days. Powered by a proprietary database of more than 400,000 venues worldwide, Nowadays helps teams save more than 135 hours per meeting, bring unmanaged meetings spend under control and drive 20-30% savings at scale. Its AI can also negotiate in local languages during local business hours, supporting global programs for companies including Google, BlackRock and Amazon.


Thrust Carbon helps organisations reduce the cost and emissions of business travel by changing traveller behaviour. We combine market-leading emissions data with real-time decision support tools and specialist advisory services to help enterprises understand their travel impact and influence choices at key decision points.Trusted by organisations including Novartis, S&P Global and Toyota, our work supports more than $100b in travel spend and is recognised through multiple AlTA and BTN industry awards.


Travel Code is an AI-powered corporate travel management platform built for mid-market companies. We automate the entire business travel lifecycle — from booking flights and hotels to expense management, policy compliance, and real-time traveler support — in one intuitive interface. Unlike legacy TMCs and enterprise tools built for Fortune 500s, Travel Code delivers enterprise-grade travel management without the enterprise price tag or complexity. Our AI assistant handles bookings, answers traveler questions, and proactively manages disruptions, saving finance teams time and reducing travel spend by up to 30%. Founded in 2022, we serve clients across North America and Europe.


Versa automates travel receipt collection and reconciliation, removing the manual work typically required from employees, travel managers and finance teams. By combining direct integrations with leading travel suppliers and AI-powered extraction from remaining sources, Versa delivers complete, structured, line-item invoice data into finance, duty-of-care and reporting systems. The platform replaces fragmented OCR and email workflows with a neutral infrastructure layer that improves documentation, compliance, audit readiness and data visibility. For travel programs, Versa reduces administrative follow-up, helps finance teams close books faster and gives organizations a scalable way to manage travel documentation without increasing operational overhead.

 BUSINESS TRAVEL SHOW EUROPE INNOVATION FACEOFF SESSIONS

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23 Jun 2026
  1. South Gallery Level 2, Room 20
    The Business Travel Innovation Faceoff showcases emerging products and services transforming corporate travel and meetings. Participants compete for two honours: the annual Business Travel Innovator a …
  2. South Gallery Level 2, Room 20
    The Business Travel Innovation Faceoff showcases emerging products and services transforming corporate travel and meetings. Participants compete for two honours: the annual Business Travel Innovator a …
24 Jun 2026
  1. Knowledge Arena
    Join us as the winners of the Business Travel Innovation Faceoff, including the Business Travel Innovator award and the People's Choice award, are announced, recognising breakthrough solutions in corp …

OUR JUDGES

keesup

Keesup Choe

CEO​ - PredictX

andy

Andy Hoskins

Editor-in-Chief - The Beat

carine

Carine Morin

Regional Travel Manager, EMEA​ - ServiceNow

ben

Ben Park

Executive Director, Travel and Sustainability - Parexel

PREVIOUS WINNERS

Simon Woods, SVP Global Sales, PredictX

“Winning means so much to our entire team. We’re constantly improving our products to deliver exactly what corporate travel and expense leaders are looking for and Business Travel Show Europe offers the opportunity to meet clients and show them our latest innovations which is so valuable.”

2025 winner

Bala Chandran, Lumo co-founder and CEO

"As someone who has been doing this since 2016, most startups take a full decade to mature... so it's been a long time coming to get to the point of where we are."

2024 winner

Gee Mann, Founder and Creator, Travlr ID

"It is truly an honour to receive this award and be recognised among our esteemed peers. We are thankful for this opportunity and excited about the future."

2023 winner

Daniel Price, CEO & Co-Founder, Jyrney

“It’s pretty awesome to win this award, especially for ground transport because it’s often the last thought about part of travel, so to represent the sector and win an award against some really strong competitors is just fabulous”

2022 winner

Jack Dow, Founder and Ceo, Grapevine 

"It means a lot to us and recognises the team's hard work over the past year and a half. It also shows how technology is reshaping the future of travel, delivering long-overdue consumer-grade experiences."

2021 winner

Ron Shah, CEO, Bizly

"It’s an honour to be recognised by such a great community and we particularly appreciate the support as we prepare to launch in Europe later this year."

2020 winner

WATCH THE 2025 BUSINESS TRAVEL SHOW EUROPE INNOVATION FACEOFF PRESENTATIONS

Get inspired ahead of this year’s event — watch the 2025 presentations here

WANT TO JOIN US IN 2026?

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE CONFERENCE