FLYR, the travel tech company from California has landed $295 million in funding. The round was led by WestCap (which backed Hunt Club and Zupee) and witnessed investments from BlackRock (which recently backed Groq and Neustark), Streamlined Ventures, and a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA).
Notably, the company has raised $225 million in Series D capital, and received an additional $70 million in credit led by Vista Credit Partners to scale its product offerings around the globe. With this, the travel tech company raised over $500 million in total funding.
The funding will accelerate the delivery of modern reservation systems, elevate digital channels, and enable AI-based decision automation for the world’s largest airlines and hospitality brands.
Appoints new board of director
In addition to the investment, Laurence A. Tosi joined FLYR’s board of directors, lending his expertise in building and scaling industry leading companies to embark on global expansion.
Laurence is the Managing Partner and Founder of WestCap, a strategic operating and investing firm and the largest investor in FLYR.
He is a serial entrepreneur and forward-looking investor in the financial services and travel sectors, previously serving in senior roles, including CFO of both Airbnb and Blackstone, and was COO of Merrill Lynch Investment Banking and Trading.
“Much of the travel industry has been technologically stagnant for years, reliant on a handful of legacy incumbents with limited capacity to innovate,” said Laurence A. Tosi, Managing Partner and Founder of WestCap. “FLYR delivers the open and dynamic platform the travel industry needs to better serve travellers and expand their services. WestCap is proud to support FLYR with growth capital and operating support as the company leads the modernization of travel with the potential to join other successful industry leading disruptors, such as Airbnb and Hopper.”
What challenge does it tackle?
The World Travel & Tourism Council predicts the travel industry will make up nearly 12% of global GDP in the next decade, soaring 50% by 2032. While the rest of the world embraces AI and new retail experiences powered by the cloud, the travel sector lags behind. The travel industry mostly relies on legacy technology that cannot meet travellers’ demand for a seamless customer experience.
This is where FLYR, founded by Alex Mans, makes a difference. Powered by AI, it enables travel businesses to improve revenue, reduce costs, and modernise their reservation systems
It eliminates legacy constraints to enable real-time decision making and create the experiences travellers seek. Cloud native, FLYR leverages technologies including deep learning, an advanced form of AI. The company helps airlines and hospitality businesses around the globe improve revenue performance, reduce cost, and modernise their e-commerce experience.
“We’ve been dedicated to reimagining the travel experience since inception,” said Alex Mans, Founder and CEO, FLYR. “As the world around us continues to advance, travel has remained in the past, reliant on an oligopoly of archaic technology vendors with misaligned incentives. FLYR makes the future possible today – helping travel providers create the experience customers want, while operating with speed and efficiency. This capital raise is a testament to the growth FLYR has achieved thus far and we’re excited to continue supporting the world’s largest travel providers at pace.”
Userbase
Its customers include JetBlueand Avianca, and established new deals with Virgin Atlantic, Best Western Scandinavia, and The Boca Raton.
“Delivering the best experience to our customers is core to every decision we make at our airlines,” said Adrian Neuhauser, CEO of Abra Group & Executive Vice Chairman at Avianca. “FLYR helps us achieve this goal everyday by delivering modern commerce capabilities to our customers and our global airline partners. This capital raise will help propel our industry forward – providing the technology that airlines need.”
What do we think about FLYR?
FLYR is set to revolutionise the travel industry by integrating AI-driven solutions that modernise outdated reservation systems and enhance customer experiences. By leveraging deep learning and cloud-native technologies, it empowers airlines and hospitality brands to make real-time, data-driven decisions, boosting revenue and efficiency. With its focus on eliminating legacy constraints, the company is poised to become a critical player in transforming how the travel industry operates, aligning with the demands of modern travellers.
