This sponsored content was created in collaboration with Skift partners.
In this video:
- Next frontiers in travel technology: A more autonomous agent AI system helps travel agencies plan, coordinate and optimize experiences, attract customers and gain loyalty, rather than simply acting as tools or assistants.
- Large personalization: You can expect that AI will need to provide over-directed itineraries, adapt to traveller behavior in real time, and improve services.
- Issues of purpose, ethics, and sustainability: Companies need to ensure that the use of AI systems is consistent with traveller values and incorporates environmental impact, social responsibility and meaningful experience.
- Industry transformation and competitive pressure: Travel agencies risk falling behind if they don't invest in reusing agent AI capabilities, modern infrastructure and legacy technology systems.
Drew Pinto, executive vice president of Marriott International at the 2025 Skift Global Forum. Kayak CEO Steve Hafner. Kelly Ungerman, senior partner at McKinsey & Company. I joined Skift Head Head in Skift for a conversation about Skift and McKinsey's recently published research report.
During the lecture, the speakers covered several important topics. Defines what “agent AI” actually means and displays case studies or conceptual scenarios. We explore ways travel agencies can leverage it to provide more adaptive, personalized and proactive services. Risks and trade-offs such as bias, trust, data privacy, and value alignment. And finally, industry recommendations, such as how to upgrade your legacy infrastructure, pilot experiments, and how to embed ethical guardrails.
The implementation of agent AI points to strategic pivots. Companies that are passive or progressive in advanced AI adoption can be overtaken by companies that embed autonomous intelligence in their service design. Agent AI could become a potential differentiator as travelers expect increasing flexibility, personalization and real-time adaptation.
In a global industry with tight margins and high consumer expectations, understanding and acting on the possibilities of Agent AI could potentially mark winners and losers in the next decade of travel innovation.
For more information on this topic, download the new report created in the collaboration between Skift and McKinsey.
This content was co-created by McKinsey & Company and Skiftx, branded content studio.
