BAE Ventures at FITUR: Embracing Innovation and Human Touch in Tourism

BAE Ventures was very well represented at the recent FITUR Tourism and Travel Fair that was held in the city of Madrid from the 24th to 26th January.

If particular interest was the FITUR TECHY event, where a part of one of the exhibition pavilions was transformed into a section dedicated totally to innovation, the future, sustainability and technology in the tourism and travel sector.

The key theme coming from Madrid was the motto, ‘Total Recall’, playing on the 1990 classic American sci-fi film, whereby visitors were able to immerse themselves in a transformative experience that challenges existing paradigms and redefines the very essence of tourism. The ‘Total Recall’ is a call to transform today's standards and to find a balance between technological efficiency, artificial intelligence, sustainability in all areas and the human touch. And, such, is a key mantra of BAE Ventures, as we look to support corporates across travel and tourism; evolving and adapting to a constantly developing scenario, where the dehumanisation, automation, cybersecurity, and digital ethics are at stake.

For travel and tourism, we cannot under-estimate the importance of the humanisation of the visitor experience. And, this is one of the most relevant challenges today because, although technology can provide efficiency and personalisation, it cannot replace warmth and the human element. Therefore, the quest to restore harmony between convenience, technological efficiency, and the human touch, where every interaction is meaningful and personalised, is important.

To bring the Total Recall, to life, FITUR TECHY focused on two key forums:

TechYnegocio – how to blend technology and business… Improvisation and new, never-before experienced scenarios make forecasting difficult. Businesses are challenged to deal with technological transformation to recapture the human essence with a focus on people. The profitability of the business will be determined by the ability to adapt to customer needs while technology facilitates operations and provision of services.

TechYfuturo – technology and the future… In essence, innovation and creativity are impacting the development of travel and tourism through robotisation and artificial intelligence and how the humanisation of technology can accelerate tourism and thus have a positive impact on society.

As BAE Ventures brings all verticals of the travel and tourism ecosystem together, it is key to ensure we look for start-up’s that are working the key drives of business success, and ensure we bring such innovative thinking to the forefront of those corporates striving for sustainable success. The BAE team left Madrid with some great new partners…