AI is useful in travel only if it meets reality. During the second day of the 2026 A World For Travel forum, Ada Xu, global government and international affairs at Fliggy/Alibaba, gathered industry experts to discuss the gap between digital promises and physical logistics. The speakers agreed that generative AI can design complex, personalised itineraries instantly, yet making those plans work remains difficult. Creating a seamless schedule in seconds is simple; ensuring every leg of the trip is physically possible is hard.
The ‘generative illusion’
The industry’s primary obstacle is no longer content generation but connecting AI to real-time mobility data to stop logistical errors. Myriam Younes, managing director for partnerships and advertising at Rome2Rio and Omio, explained that the first facet of this challenge is AI’s apparent omniscience. She noted that AI often ignores its own limitations.
“There is a disconnect between the wonderful itinerary AI will give you and what is actually possible,” Younes said. “AI will always give you an answer. It will not necessarily tell you ‘I don’t know’.”
Travel companies are now seeking a technical “reality check” to bridge this divide. Currently, this verification process creates fragmentation because users build itineraries with assistants like ChatGPT but must later confirm details on third-party services by checking timetables and availability. In regions like Asia and Latin America, bus and ferry networks remain fragmented and only lightly digitised, making the injection of live data essential yet difficult.
Users often ask if a specific ferry runs in November or if a bus operates at the required frequency during the low season. Younes stated that a gap still exists between the ideal itinerary and the real conditions of access, mobility, and connectivity needed to complete a journey.
Integrating live inventories
Plugging the technology into live inventories is the model developed by Alibaba. The company integrated Fliggy’s AI assistant with hotel and transport databases in real time. When a user describes an ideal stay, such as a three-day Paris trip with a view of the Eiffel Tower, the assistant does not stop at theoretical suggestions. It checks live prices and confirms availability for exact dates to generate instant booking links.
According to the panel, AI is a facilitator rather than an end goal. Crossley added that for his organisation, AI is not a strategy but a lever to improve the cycle of benefits delivered to the customer. The speakers concluded that success belongs to those who can match the ease of a conversational interface with the rigour of real-time B2B transport inventories and data.