Booking Holdings (BKNG) J.P. Morgan 54th Annual Global Technology, Media and Communications Conference summary

Industry outlook and growth drivers

• Travel spending has historically outpaced global GDP by 1–2%, driven by rising global wealth and increasing digital adoption, with significant untapped potential as many people still do not travel or book digitally.

• The sector benefits from enduring consumer desire to explore, with long-term growth expected despite short-term volatility from events like wars or pandemics.

• Key focus is on gaining market share in digital travel by offering superior products and services to both travelers and partners.

• Geographic expansion, Connected Trip, payments, and new verticals are all being pursued, with agility and broad investment across these vectors prioritized over picking a single winner.

• U.S. market share has grown, with four consecutive quarters of low-teens growth, reflecting product and service improvements.

Strategic investments and technology

• Long-term value creation is prioritized over short-term gains, with continued investment in product and service innovation, even during periods of macro uncertainty.

• AI is seen as a major net positive, enhancing discovery, personalization, and operational efficiency, with ongoing collaboration with multiple AI and LLM providers globally.

• Internal AI and machine learning models drive better pricing, ranking, and customer experiences, leveraging the company’s large data set.

• Efficiency gains from AI include reduced personnel needs, faster product development, and lower customer service costs, with higher customer satisfaction from AI-driven interactions.

• The Genius loyalty program and Connected Trip are being integrated and enhanced with AI to deliver unique, personalized offers and seamless travel experiences.

Product development and customer experience

• Connected Trip transactions grew in the high teens in 1Q and now represent a low double-digit percentage of total transactions, with significant room for further integration and growth.

• Friction points remain in fully realizing Connected Trip’s potential, such as integrating restaurant and activity recommendations based on real-time data and user preferences.

• The Genius program is expanding across all verticals, aiming to offer differentiated value, especially to international users not locked into other loyalty ecosystems.

• AI-driven trip planning tools like Priceline Penny are being developed to handle complex itineraries, with ongoing improvements expected.

• The vision is to provide a “travel agent in your pocket” experience, dynamically optimizing itineraries and offers based on real-time conditions.