From September 22–24, 2026, the Skift Global Forum will convene leaders from the travel industry to address pressing decisions about the sector’s technological evolution, shifting markets, and overall future.
With the global travel industry facing disruptive technological innovation and evolving consumer trends, executives at the 2026 Skift Global Forum will discuss five critical decisions that could define travel for the coming decade. The event, designed for annual subscribers (with additional fee-based access for other attendees), is structured around these major industry dilemmas as identified in Skift Research’s State of Travel 2026 report.
Central Debates: Expansion, Trust, and Technology’s Influence
Although the travel sector continues to grow, its business models and internal structures are constantly evolving. The urgency stems primarily from two factors: the transformation happening within the travel marketplace and the leap in technological progress that’s surpassing confidence levels among consumers and corporations regarding new digital solutions.
Each forum session highlights a specific “consequential decision” that senior executives must currently consider. The event is set up to generate debate by bringing together incumbents, upstarts, and investors to test prevailing beliefs and foster challenging conversations.
According to Skift Research, the “travel stack” consists of four essential layers: consumers, commerce, operations, and experiences. Staying competitive in each of these segments is necessary for companies—lagging in any area risks losing ground to more innovative rivals.
Prominent speakers like Glenn Fogel of Booking Holdings, Brian Chesky of Airbnb, and Ariane Gorin of Expedia Group will offer their perspectives on topics like scaling operations, reinventing established models, and making strategic technology investments.
Artificial intelligence will be a focal point: incumbent travel companies are leveraging AI for better internal productivity—Airbnb managed to reduce support costs per booking by 16% in a year—while startups fueled by venture capital are betting on AI to unlock future demand. By mid-2025, AI-powered travel startups attracted 45% of all startup funding, up significantly from 10% in 2023 (Skift Research and McKinsey).
Five Defining Choices for 2026
The event focuses on five transformative decisions now confronting travel companies:
- Stick with Tradition or Reinvent? Should leading companies persist with their established business models or pivot quickly like startups? Though distribution remains controlled by names like Booking Holdings and Expedia, companies such as Airbnb are rebuilding their systems around AI. Nonetheless, with AI agents currently responsible for less than 1% of room-night referrals on Booking.com, questions remain about the effectiveness of these innovations.
- From Funnel to Agent: The shift away from keyword-based discovery to conversational AI in travel search means only data-optimized brands are easily found—raising fresh challenges over branding. Presently, only 6% of hotels appear in AI-powered search results (Skift), and just 2% of leisure travelers are willing to have AI book trips for them.
- Chasing Premium or Pursuing Volume? Major airlines are transforming cabins to favor high-margin, premium seats, with Delta’s premium revenue rising by 7% in 2025 as its main cabin revenue fell by 5%. Seat expansion in 2026 is largely in premium segments, making the sector more dependent on affluent customers. At the same time, 62% of travelers globally intend to cut back or modify travel because of price pressures (Skift Research).
- People vs. Automation: Companies face decisions on the degree to which guest interactions should be automated. While automation aids efficiency in tasks like reservations, a staffing shortfall persists in roles where personal interaction is valued, which could impact loyalty and the customer experience.
- Speed or Certainty? Rapid market swings create tough calls for leaders: move with limited data and risk, or hold off for clearer signals and risk missed opportunity? For example, U.S. international travel dropped by 5.5% even as domestic volumes stayed level (U.S. Travel Association), and industry projections for full U.S. inbound recovery shifted from 2025 to 2029 in a single reassessment.
Navigating Between Disruption and Continuity
A key theme throughout the discussions will be discerning whether organizations are genuinely preparing for the future or reacting only after market changes. Patterns are clear: domestic travel demand is growing, premium offerings are gaining focus, and booking technologies are evolving rapidly. Organizations have to select which trends to act on—balancing speed of change with the need to maintain their foundational models.
Forum attendees will analyze the contrasting ways key players operate: Booking Holdings’ advantage in scale, Airbnb’s comprehensive technological overhaul, and Accor’s approach to unpredictable conditions. Through exchange with industry peers and sector experts, participants are expected to leave with refined perspectives on what decisions are most critical for their companies’ long-term viability.
For those interested, event registration and the complete agenda can be found online.