TripAdvisor rival GetYourGuide nears $2 billion valuation as it raises fresh funds to invest in A.I.
Summary
German online travel startup GetYourGuide raised $194 million from investors, hoping to capitalize on a bump in demand for travel services in the summer, further an expansion into the U.S., and invest in large language models and other artificial intelligence tools. The debt portion of the deal was led by UniCredit and also backed by BNP Paribas, Citibank and KfW. GetYourGuides product differs from those offered by some other major players in the online travel space. Rather than advertise hotels, flights and other forms of transportation, GetYourGuide sells its users experiences and things to do in unexplored places. These experiences are offered through third-party suppliers on its platform, with GetYourGuide taking a commission on each booking.