How Amadeus brings innovation to life

Research and development is critical to bringing innovation to life. Without investment of resource, time and money, many brilliant ideas simply wouldn’t see the light of day. 

Why do we love innovation so much? Why is it so important? Because, generally speaking, it impacts our lives in a positive way. It saves us time, makes complex tasks easier and saves us money. The combustion engine, the smart phone, the wheel – all at one time concepts in someone’s mind that ultimately, significantly changed the way we live. And it’s hard to imagine life without them now!

Investing in R&D; looking for new and different ways to shape the travel experience, is a strategic priority for Amadeus - but more than that, its core to who we are.  We are passionate about travel and making the experience as easy and enjoyable as possible.  

We are ranked as the number one investor in R&D for the travel and tourism industry in Europe, with around 16% of our revenue going back into research and development. But what does this actually mean for our customers and for travellers? 

We work across a range of different customer types and industry sectors, from corporations to airlines, travel agencies and providers such as rail and hotels. For each of them, our commitment to innovation can mean different things – but there are common benefits: 

• they are accessing the very latest in travel technology 
• they are using robust, reliable and highly secure technology platforms and infrastructure 
• they have an IT partner who always working to meet their needs
• their IT provider is constantly looking to innovate, test and challenge  to shape the future of travel      

Technology is an enabler. By investing so heavily in innovation, we ensure organisations are enabled to work in the most effective, efficient way possible. This makes the travel experience better for all stakeholders – in the business travel sector, corporations benefit from better productivity and cost control; travellers can book and manage their trips faster and easier.  

Our commitment to developing innovation extends beyond our own organisation. In 2015 Amadeus in Asia Pacific established Amadeus Next. This is a travel technology start-up community that joins and connects key players. It facilitates mentoring and partnerships to take these businesses to the next level.  Globally, we have Amadeus Ventures, a similar program investing in start-ups and partnering with them to bring more value into the global travel industry.  You might have heard of some of our alumni, such as Booking Boss, Seatfrog and Bluesmart luggage.  

Some of our recent developments in corporate travel include a great tool that supports duty of care for business travellers, and a next-level travel and expense management platform.  We also have built a platform that aggregates remote accommodation and camp site content for customers that need to travel to rural or remote mine sites.