2017 Innovators You Should Know

There’s a reason innovation comes slowly. It’s hard. It’s hard for those with new products to get customers to ditch their old suppliers. It’s hard for travel managers to get buy-in (ahem, money) from higher-ups and to get adoption from end users. The physical law of inertia applies, as well, to running a travel program: You need a force sufficient to bounce your program out of its status quo. Here are six compelling new travel suppliers whose missions—to streamline expense auditing, protect travelers, improve the travel experience, ease booking, improve adoption and even reinvent the entire travel-buying economy—might do the trick.

AppZen
AppZen

Q&A with CEO Anant Kale
Startup AppZen's artificial intelligence engine analyzes expense reports and receipts to catch duplicates and out-of-policy purchases, and it scours the Internet to validate that the merchants and meal companions who show up are real. KEEP READING

SafeTravelRx
SafeTravelRx

Q&A with CEO Ron DiLeo
In October 2017, startup SafeTravelRx is launching an affordable travel risk management mobile solution for Android and iOS. KEEP READING

Shep
Shep

Q&A with CEO Daniel Senyard
Austin-based startup Shep is a browser plug-in that facilitates open bookings that fall within the guidelines of a company's travel policy. KEEP READING

30SecondsToFly
30SecondsToFly

Q&A with CEO Felicia Schneiderhan
With its virtual travel assistant, Claire, 30SecondsToFly is building an "artificially intelligent employee" that companies can hire. She's savvy about corporate travel policy and can learn on the job, among other things. KEEP READING

Tripism
Tripism

Q&A with founder Adam Kerr
Tripism's booking interface pairs preferred suppliers with coworkers' feedback on properties, restaurants and the like. The result is an in-policy booking informed by a consumer eye. KEEP READING

Winding Tree
Winding Tree

Q&A with CEO Maksim Izmaylov
Winding Tree is among the few startups applying blockchain directly to the travel space. It is developing a "new economy" for hotel, airline, rental car and other travel suppliers—from distribution through payment. KEEP READING



Check Out Innovators You Should Know 2016