Global Startup Pitch Crowns 9 Travel Tech Innovators

Nine innovative travel technology startups have emerged as winners of the 2025 Global Startup Pitch, a competition organized by Phocuswright and WiT and held this week at Phocuswright Europe in Barcelona. Designed to spotlight promising startups poised to reshape the travel industry, the event brought together early-stage and growth-phase companies across four global regions and a Wildcards category.

The competition divided entrants into two classifications: “Seedups,” startups younger than three years with less than $5 million in funding, and “Scaleups,” companies aged three to eight years with under $10 million in funding. Each group competed against its peers in one of four regions—Asia Pacific, Europe, North America, and Emerging Markets. A fifth category, Wildcards, selected standout entries regardless of origin or age.

In the Asia Pacific region, Replyr won the Seedup award, while Loyalty Status Co. took the Scaleup title. For Europe, ImpersonAlly secured the Seedup category and Arcube claimed the Scaleup prize. North America’s winners were Levee for Seedup and PassiveBolt for Scaleup. Kijani Supplies and BuzzAR represented the Emerging Markets as Seedup and Scaleup winners, respectively. Me Protocol won in the Wildcards category.

All nine winners will now travel to WiT Singapore, taking place from October 6 to 8, for showcase presentations. The APAC winners will also receive an ASEAN Explorer Pass sponsored by AirAsia MOVE, providing travel access across nine countries in Southeast Asia. Additionally, Me Protocol has been awarded a complimentary strategy consulting session with Travel Again Advisory.

Michael Coletta, Phocuswright’s senior manager of research and innovation, praised the range and depth of innovation, highlighting AI-driven technologies such as Model Context Protocol that reflect the industry’s push toward future-ready solutions. Coletta noted the impressive diversity of focus areas, including loyalty programs, digital identity, fraud prevention, and ancillary revenue tools.

The Global Startup Pitch is part of a broader initiative by Phocuswright and WiT to foster travel tech innovation through programs like the Phocuswright Startup Program, WiT Bootcamps, PhocusWire’s Hot 25 Travel Startups, and the Phocuswright Launch competition. With support from American Express Global Business Travel, the competition continues to serve as a launchpad for companies developing game-changing tools for the evolving travel landscape.

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Global Startup Pitch Crowns 9 Travel Tech Innovators

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