Expedia Group has appointed Xavier Amatriain its first chief artificial intelligence (AI) and data officer.
Amatriain is the former VP of AI and compute enablement at Google. At Expedia, Amatriain will oversee the company’s “long-term vision for AI and machine learning” and work with AI leaders from Expedia Group’s strategic partnerships, B2B, product, marketing and finance divisions.
“AI is entering a new era—one powered by generative, agentic and truly adaptive technologies that will fundamentally reshape how we explore the world,” Amatriain said.
“We’re creating seamless end-to-end travel experiences, and no company is better positioned than Expedia Group to lead this next wave. I’m excited to join the team and help build a future of travel that is more intelligent, intuitive and transformative for millions of travelers.”
Expedia Group’s move is in line with a larger hiring trend in the travel tech space. In September, Skyscanner announced that chief product officer Piero Sierra had been appointed chief AI officer. In a LinkedIn post, Sierra said the role involved “curiosity, learning and making sure we use AI to make travel more personal, intuitive and inspiring.”
SiteMinder also appointed Samantha Lawson as an “independent non-executive director of the board,” effective December 1. SiteMinder chair Pat O’Sullivan said Lawson will be an asset thanks to her “extensive experience with AI and emerging technologies.”