Building open data for AI is not a luxury, it's the new ace up tourism's sleeve

We have been talking about digital transformation for years, but the real leap is not having a CRM or a crappy chatbot, it is building the open datasets that feed artificial intelligence. It sounds like tech jargon, but it is as basic as this: if destinations, hotels and airlines do not start structuring and releasing their data so an AI can understand it, they will miss the train on real personalization and operational efficiency.

What does "open data for AI" really mean in travel?

I am not talking about posting a PDF with occupancy stats on the city council website. I am talking about creating APIs and structured repositories that allow language models like GPT or Gemini to access up-to-date information on availability, dynamic pricing, local events, visa regulations or verified reviews. Without that material, AI hallucinates, makes things up and fails. And the travel industry, which lives on trust, cannot afford that.

• Hotels: imagine an assistant that instantly knows which rooms are free, the last-minute price and whether the previous guest asked for more pillows. That requires real-time open data.
• Airlines: AI can predict overbooking or optimal routes if fed with weather, air traffic and historical sales data.
• Governments: smart destinations need to share data on footfall, sustainability and transport so third-party platforms can offer frictionless personalized experiences.

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Those who do not open data remain blind

I have seen many DMOs boast about being a "smart destination" with an app that connects to nothing. It is just showboating. The true intelligence of a destination lies in its ability to expose data to external agents (OTAs, startups, search engines) so they can compete and generate value. If your airline does not let an AI query its live seat inventory, do not expect a virtual assistant to recommend your flight over a competitor's.

The risk of opacity

Sure, there are fears: privacy, losing control over pricing, competitors scraping your data. But the bigger risk is not being in the ecosystem at all. AI will train on whatever is available. If your data is not there, algorithms will ignore your hotel, your route or your destination. The gap will not be between big and small players, but between those who understand that open data is the new ace up the sleeve and those who still keep it locked in a local Excel file.

Opinionated conclusion

We do not need more speeches on innovation. We need every destination to publish an open data catalogue, every hotel to expose its availability via API and every airline to standardize its feeds. AI is not coming to save us, it is coming to consume what we feed it. If you do not feed it, it will eat you.