Expedia Acquires Conversational Trip-Planner Layla

Expedia Group has acquired Layla, an artificial-intelligence travel planner that helps users research and book trips through conversational interactions and live pricing. Layla will continue operating as a standalone service, while its team works alongside Expedia’s wider group of travel brands. The deal gives Expedia additional AI expertise as online travel companies compete to make planning more personalised and interactive. Rather than moving between separate search, comparison and booking pages, travellers can describe their interests and receive itinerary suggestions within a conversation. The acquisition also shows that major platforms are increasingly buying specialised technology teams instead of relying entirely on internally developed AI products.